


Chaotic Turmoil

by lumiere_is_light



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Anxiety, Depression, Developing Relationship, Fluff, Gen, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Panic Attacks, Serious Injuries, Slow Burn, Teen Angst, Whump
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:00:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 48,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26249851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lumiere_is_light/pseuds/lumiere_is_light
Summary: An au where the JLA and the Team managed to beat and capture Klarion the Witch Boy. He lives in the cave with the Team and navigates his new reality powerless and without his familiar. He withdraws into himself and struggles a lot.It’s sad, but gets better eventually.
Relationships: Klarion/Zatanna Zatara
Comments: 52
Kudos: 136





	1. I

It felt uncharacteristically quiet in Mount Justice. Little to no noise could be heard, other than the quiet murmurs of the young heroes. The team stood solemnly at the entrance of the mountain, talking amongst themselves waiting for members of the Justice League to arrive. Under normal circumstances the team would be excited, almost giddy to have a visit from the League. However the circumstances were not normal today.

There was a palpable tension, everyone was on edge in one way or another. All the young heroes were dressed in their uniforms, ready for a fight if it came to it. Kid Flash, Artemis and Robin were practically seething where they stood. Aqualad and surprisingly Superboy held passive, yet serious expressions. Miss Martian and Rocket were engrossed in quiet conversation. Zatanna stood somewhat away from the team, minding herself and simply observing. She felt the need to keep a small distance, a birds eye view of sorts. The thick silence was interrupted by an angry Kid Flash, his expression sour and disdainful.

“I still can’t believe you agreed to this Kaldur! And I can’t believe the League came up with this dumb idea!” He exclaimed, his arms making exaggerated gestures. “I mean come on. Klarion, here, really?” Everyone’s eyes were on Kaldur in an instant. Aqualad simply sighed.

“As I explained before, the League hope to rehabilitate Klarion and eventually make him part of the team.” Aqualad said calmly. “I agreed because there is potential and he knows much about the Light’s activities, he could prove useful in our fight against them. Please try to respect my decision.” Artemis, Kid Flash and Robin scowled. Zatanna’s ears perked up slightly, her attention on their team leader.

“Are we just supposed to forgive him for everything he’s done?” Artemis questioned. “He killed Kent Nelson, mind controlled the whole League, split our world into two-“

“And made Zatara Dr. Fate.” Robin interjected. Zatanna’s heart pulled at that statement.

“Yeah, he’s basically the reason Zatara is Dr. Fate. He is just all around evil!” Artemis added. Aqualad made to speak but was cut off by Robin.

“How are we supposed to trust that he won’t just kill us when we aren’t looking? That he won’t escape and sell us out?” Robin asked sternly. He was the least happy about this arrangement and had tried to dissuade Batman to no avail. Aqualad sighed yet again.

“From my last communication with Aquaman, Klarion’s powers are entirely blocked with the Belle Reve collar on. Besides, he is still severely injured from the battle three weeks ago.” He explained. The team kept going back and forth with this argument, but Zatanna cringed inwardly.

The battle from three weeks ago had been a painful defeat to witness.  
___________________________________________

The League and the team had deduced that their best shot at getting to the Light, was through Klarion. From what they gathered, he was an invaluable member and knew many of the Light’s secrets, including who the elusive members were. It had become clear that Klarion was a member, meaning if they managed to defeat and contain him somehow, they would be a step closer to dismantling the Light indefinitely. 

So the Team and the Justice League devised a plan. The Team would draw Klarion out into the open under the pretence that most of the League was off world or in another city. While they hoped it could be a quick attack, they knew it would be difficult to defeat the Lord of Chaos. Their initial plan worked however and the team began fighting Klarion in the open for about an hour before the entirety of the Justice League joined into the fight.

That was when the real fight began.

Klarion was a ruthless opponent, his magic was volatile and powerful like no other. Zatanna remembered how her magic could only just penetrate his shields. The combination of fighting the League and the Team did not seem to phase Klarion at first, however after several long hours of continuous fighting alone against so many, he began to tire. Then, everyone started throwing everything they had at him. 

Batman sent batarangs flying by the dozens. Superman utilised every power at one point or another. Wonder Woman’s lasso was constantly utilised. Green Arrow and Artemis’ arrows were whistling unendingly. The Flash and Kid Flash were all over the battle field doing various things to help others. Mentor’s teamed up with their sidekicks, Leaguers helped each other rearm or sent the other flying for an attack. The heavy hitting heroes focused their attention on Klarion’s shields while the more inconspicuous heroes tried to get as close as possible. 

Their efforts only made the Lord of Chaos more angry and he managed to rain down fiery hell on the heroes several more times before he became visibly depleted. Teekl even began showing signs of tiredness, allowing Klarion’s carefully guarded vulnerability to seep through. Klarion had been ready to make his get away. He had begun reaching for his familiar when an arrow penetrated his weakening shields and grazed his right leg. In Klarion’s moment of shock, one of the heroes managed to hit Teekl with an energy blast, rendering Klarion unable to leave.

It was in that moment that one of the heroes, Zatanna could not remember who, had signalled for Dr. Fate to finally make his appearance, turning the tides of this battle. Zatanna vividly remembered the look of pure and utter anguish that graced Klarion’s face when Fate appeared. The way his jaw trembled as he mouthed “please no”. Had it been Dr. Fate alone against Klarion, the Lord of Chaos likely would have won. Even against the League, Klarion still had infinitely more power. But together? No. Klarion did not stand a chance and he seemed painfully aware of that. 

With renewed vigour, Klarion launched his attacks once more, doing considerable damage even in his weakened state. Teekl had taken her saber tooth form, going on a rampage of her own. However this did not last long. A batarang managed to hit Klarion on his already injured right leg, burying itself in his thigh right above his knee, tearing into the muscle. Soon after Dr. Fate sent an energy bolt, colliding with Klarion’s right side. He called Teekl back and she began defending her master at a much closer range. Several other Leaguers managed to get a few other hits in, causing Klarion to lean heavily on near by debris. 

Zatanna had found it increasingly difficult to watch. If she was honest with herself, it had been an extremely unfair fight and unnecessarily violent.

The nail in the coffin finally came when Dr. Fate shone a light so bright that Klarion became disoriented. In those few moments, Wonder Woman and Superman had picked up a knocked over lamp post and together launched it at the Witch Boy like a spear with both their full combined strengths. Klarion had come to just in time to see the lamp post hurtling towards him and in a desperate attempt to protect himself, he tried in vain to conjure up a shield. Instead, the lamp post hit him square in the left shoulder with a very audible crack. His pent up power was projected as he lost his grasp on his magic with a terrible cry. Everyone was knocked over, but they quickly recovered and prepared to fight. 

Klarion did not get up. He lay prone next to the offending lamp post.

No one dared go near him, for fear he might incinerate someone if they got too close. Everyone started looking around at one another, breathing sighs of relief that it was over. That they had defeated the Lord of Chaos with their combined efforts. The heroes and sidekicks were helping each other up, congratulating the others. 

Zatanna had started approaching Klarion’s form. As she drew closer she could see how his suit was torn in several places, revealing the injured skin beneath. She made to get closer, but Batman’s gloved hand stopped her. As he walked towards Klarion, Teekl hissed weakly, attempting to be a barrier between everyone and her master sprawled behind her. Batman simply ignored the small tabby cat, instead crouching near Klarion’s head and snapped an inhibitor collar on. Everyone else looked on anxiously as the red lights slowly lit up. One last beep signalled that the collar was functional and that Klarion’s magic was now blocked off. Moments later everyone began silently celebrating their victory. It was over. They had actually won. 

As Zatanna looked on, she heard a barely audible whimper. Her head snapped towards Klarion. His eyes were opening and he was writhing where he lay. Teekl was lightly pawing at her master’s forehead, seemingly trying to soothe him. When Klarion’s eyes finally opened, his face scrunched up and a gut wrenching cry escaped from his lips. Zatanna gasped and the rest of League turned to the sound. 

A stream of dark red blood began leaking from the corner of Klarion’s mouth as he sobbed weakly. Upon looking closer, the heroes realised that his dark suit was torn and covered in red. Klarion was dying, painfully. Both the League and the Team had forgotten during the battle that while Klarion was powerful beyond reason, he was still a teenager. That under all of that chaos and magic, he was in essence, still a child. It was not a good look for the heroes, to have essentially utilised all of their fire power and destroyed a significant amount of infrastructure, just to violently kill a child. 

Once they realised that the situation was dire, the League moved fast. Klarion had begun curling in on himself and clawing at his arms in a vain attempt to stop the pain. Green Lantern had created a stretcher with his ring, Superman had summoned one of the League’s jets, Batman was already on the phone with a nearby medical facility and Dr. Fate had caged a distracted Teekl. Martian Manhunter carefully lifted Klarion onto the bright green stretcher and within a minute they were away.  
____________________________________________

Neither Zatanna nor the team had seen him since. Only getting vague updates. And that was three weeks ago. He was set to arrive at any moment, much to the teams displeasure. None of them really wanted him there and they were prepared to make that abundantly clear. Zatanna was brought out of her thoughts when Aqualad raised his voice ever so slightly at their teammates.

“I understand that this is not an ideal situation, but as team leader, I ask that you respect my decision.” He said it with such gravitas and authority that the whole team went quiet. It stayed quiet until the sound of a jet outside alerted the young heroes to the arrival of the Leaguers and the newly defeated Lord of Chaos. As the large cave doors opened, the team caught sight of who was actually outside.

Zatanna counted six Leaguers and Klarion himself. Among the Leaguers was Batman, Superman, Black Canary, the Flash, Aquaman and Dr. Fate. Between Superman and Fate stood Klarion. Standing between such power houses made him look impossibly small, not to mention he wore the bright orange Belle Reve jump suit and heavy looking gold shackles. He walked with a slight limp and kept his gaze firmly fixed on the ground. 

As the Leaguers entered the cave and the large door closed behind them, the Team all turned to stare at Klarion. Artemis, Kid Flash and Robin all held openly disdainful and almost hateful gazes, Aqualad, Miss Martian and Rocket, looked uneasy, and Zatanna held a long practiced passive expression. She noted however that Klarion was not in the greatest shape. His face was gaunt and paler than normal, with dark circles under his eyes. His eyes looked slightly hollow as he refused to look at anything but the floor. And perhaps most alarmingly was a deep blue and still healing bruise high on his right cheek bone. His bony hands shook in their shackles and his hair was curling and disheveled. Most of all, Klarion looked tired, exhausted even, like he had not had a good nights sleep in several days. 

Batman began explaining the ins and outs of Klarion’s captivity, taking up the attention of the team. But Zatanna was not listening to Batman, instead she silently looked on at Dr. Fate and Klarion. Fate’s hand lit up and the shackles Klarion wore transformed into two thin gold bracelets on either wrist. She assumed they blocked his magic even more than the inhibitor collar already did. Klarion rubbed his reddened wrists a little bit before Fate leaned in close to his ear and whispered something. 

“One wrong move Witch Boy, one hair out of order and I will ship you back to Limbo, powerless, faster than you can call for you familiar. Is that understood?” Fate sounded menacing and Klarion’s scared expression reflected this. He nodded quickly as his eyes darted from side to side, not wanting to look at Nabu. With that, Dr. Fate teleported away. Klarion stood nervously, finally looking up at the heroes in front of him. 

“If there are any complications, do not hesitate to call us.” Batman said as he finished his explanations. Aqualad nodded in affirmation And the five remaining JLA members took their leave. Klarion stood alone and he cautiously looked at the Team. They simply stared back, their gazes distrusting and hateful. Klarion looked instantly uncomfortable, nervous and even scared. Aqualad soon stepped forward, doing his best to display a less hostile demeanour then his team mates.

“Welcome to the cave, if you would follow me, I will show you to your room.” Aqualad said in a levelled tone. Klarion hesitated a moment, but then nodded and began following Aqualad. 

As they walked away, everyone’s eyes were on Klarion’s back, no doubt making his discomfort even stronger. Zatanna could not help feeling conflicted about the whole situation. She did not outright hate him, and was not going to be extremely hostile like some of her colleagues, but she could not help the feeling of resentment fill her. Her father was Dr. Fate because of Klarion, at least partially. She looked at his retreating form one more time, before steeling her nerves and heading to her bedroom in the very same hall, to meditate on what she was feeling.


	2. II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of Klarion’s pov  
> Tw: references to depression, anxiety, self hatred

Klarion followed Aqualad through the cave silently and nervously. His heart was pounding hard and his chest constructed with growing anxiousness. He kept his gaze levelled with a spot just above Aqualad’s shoulder, doing his best to keep putting one foot in front of the other and not fall over. He desperately wanted to be alone, away from the scrutinising eyes that have been staring at him from everywhere.  
____________________________________________________

After the battle, he had woken up strapped to a hospital bed. The pain he was in was blinding. The pain was so intense, it felt as if he was being ripped up from the inside. The Justice League were not particularly sympathetic to his injuries that they had caused. Instead they relentlessly questioned him about everything related to the Light. Many League members came and went, interrogating him from all angles, but Klarion was too delirious to give them any coherent responses.

Teekl had been kept from him. He could sense her, that she was hurting as he was being away from her. When he had realised that they would not give her back, he lost his will to fight. Whenever the heroes asked him questions, he stayed quiet, barely looked at them. His injuries pained him constantly and he withdrew into himself. At one point, Batman had informed Klarion that he would be going to live at Mt. Justice, with the young heroes. Outwardly he did not respond. On the inside, his anxiety surged.  
____________________________________________________

They reached the end of the hall and Aqualad stopped in front of the very last door. Klarion cautiously looked around himself, before stopping in front of the young Atlantian. Aqualad pressed a button on the panel next to the tall steel door. It swished to the side abruptly, causing Klarion to flinch slightly. Aqualad turned to him.

“This is where you will be staying, it will be comfortable enough.” He said with a slightly dismissive tone. 

“Uhm... thank you.” Klarion responded softly. He had wanted to ask where he could eventually find things he needed, but Aqualad had already started walking away. Klarion didn’t blame him, he had every right to not want to be around the Witch Boy. He sighed as he watched Aqualad then the corner, leaving him alone in the hall. 

Klarion looked around himself out of habit for Teekl, only to feel a wave of melancholy crash over him when he realised his stupidity. She was not anywhere near him and it caused his chest to constrict. 

Foot steps began to sound at the end of the hall and out of fear, he almost threw himself into the room. He slammed the button and the door swished shut. Klarion took a deep breath and leaned his back against the door. 

His head was pounding and his injuries were flaring. At one point since his capture, a doctor had listed his various injuries to him. It unsettled him deeply that the heroes had been able to damage him so badly. His body had always been protected by his magic and power, leaving Teekl as his only weakness. Teekl. By god it hurt being away from her.

Klarion took gritted his teeth and he limped around the room that was in essence his prison. It was completely bare aside from the bed that was made and a wardrobe. There were no windows, allowing for no natural light. There was another door that led to a bathroom he discovered, consisting of a toilet, a sink and a shower. There was nothing in the room he could use to make it personal to him in anyway, after all he didn’t have anything that truly belonged to him. That fact made him look at the vast nothingness of his prison and he felt tears sting behind his eyes. 

Klarion looked down at the orange jumpsuit and felt long repressed feelings of self hatred bubble up in his chest. He needed to get it off. He was desperate to get it off. He quickly limped over to the wardrobe as tears started to well up. He opened the wardrobe and found a set of clothes he could change into. He found a pair of black sweatpants and a navy blue jumper, both too big for him. 

He quickly tossed the clothes onto the bed and started to unbutton the jumpsuit. His injured left shoulder immediately protested flaring up so painfully that he cried out. He fought through the pain, but he could not stop the tears of frustration from falling. When all the buttons were undone, he did his best to shrug the sleeves of the jumpsuit off, his breath hitching every time he made a wrong movement with his injured shoulder. Eventually, after a long struggle, he did manage to get the sleeves off and he pushed the orange material down to his hips with a growl. As he walked towards the bed to pick up the new clothes, he stopped dead in his tracks when he came across the mirror that he had not noticed before.

Upon seeing his reflection for the first time in three weeks, Klarion felt sick to his stomach and tears fell from his eyes. 

He looked truly horrendous, horrific even. His left shoulder and parts of his chest was black from being hit by the lamp post, with blue and purple bruising surrounding the black spots. His whole left arm was blue and red from the impact, reaching all the way to his hand. Klarion could see the outline of every broken rib and the internal bleeding he had experienced marked his skin in some places. He twisted around to see the equally horrific bruises and cuts on his back. His breathing sped up and tears began streaming down his hollowed cheeks. He looked closer and saw the large bruise on his cheek bone. The dark circles around his dulled eyes reflected his exhaustion and he registered that his skin looked almost translucent. 

A sob escaped him when he looked at the inhibitor collar around his neck. It stood out so strongly that it was a constant reminder that he was nothing more than a chained animal. A weapon of mass destruction even. Dr. Fate had even insisted on him wearing magical shackles around his wrists, adding insult to injury. He was shackled and collared, the only thing missing was a muzzle and the prospect of that instilled a fear in him that he had not felt in an age. Klarion was chaos personified, blocking his magic made him feel wrong and extremely uncomfortable inside. It made him question his very existence as a Lord of Chaos, how useless he became when his magic was blocked off.

Was this why no one had come for him? Did the Light only see use in him if he had access to his powers? And the Justice League had known to target him. They knew he was at their mercy until her gave up information. 

Klarion sobbed harder at his reflection, what he had been reduced to. Damaged and caged by the supposed heroes, and abandoned by his allies. He was alone in this, he knew. He doubted he would get anything but hostility and distrust from the people he now essentially lived with. He had already felt the powerful hatred radiating off of the Team and he knew it would only get worse from here. 

No longer caring about his tears, Klarion pulled the jumper over his head and carefully put his arms through, all while sobbing painfully. He carefully pulled his shoes off and the rest of the jump suit with violently shaking hands, immediately putting on the sweatpants. He tried desperately to stifle his sobs and tears, but they would not stop. He put a hand to his chest and limped over to the bed.

He practically fell onto it, whimpering as it jostled his badly injured body. He managed to pull the covers over himself before instantly curling in on himself on his right side. His sobs intensified as the pain grew worse and he curled in on himself impossibly tighter. Klarion shook as he cried, his mind filled with depressing thoughts and the looks of those who hated him deeply. 

In the cold darkness of his bedroom, the only comforting thought that came to Klarion’s addled mind was his precious familiar. He tried to keep Teekl at the forefront of his mind as he broke down, curled up in his new bed. It would be a while before he calmed down, but when he did, Klarion’s body gave in to its exhaustion, and he fell into an uneasy sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback is always welcome :)


	3. III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some Zatanna pov :)  
> I paint the team and the league in a bit of a bad light, I’m sorry but it’s angst

On the sixth day of Klarion being at the cave, Zatanna was sat in the living room reading. The Team had a day off from missions, meaning they were around the cave doing various things. M’gann was cooking not far away from where Zatanna was sitting. Kaldur was doing admin work on the holographic computer in the other room. Raquel was away with her boyfriend for a few days. Wally, Dick, Artemis and Conner had been training for several hours and were making their way to the kitchen. Zatanna heard their approaching footsteps and the sounds of their voices increasing.

“You know he hasn’t been out of his room in like three days right?” Dick remarked.

“Yeh it’s so weird. It makes me dislike him even more than before for some reason.” Wally responded. 

“The whole situation is just so dumb! Why does he have to stay here?” Artemis exclaimed as they appeared in the living room and kitchen area. Zatanna looked up from her book and M’gann looked up from the vegetables she was cutting to catch Connor coming towards her. “This has to be some sort of punishment from the League or something.” Artemis continued.

“He doesn’t even do anything, what’s the point?” Wally asked rhetorically. “I mean even the last time he came out, all he did was walk around and give us nasty looks.”

After arriving, Klarion had come out of his room a total of four times in the first three days of his being there. Unfortunately, no matter what time of day or night he came out, there was always a member of the team around. The resulting confrontations usually ended with the team loudly making hateful comments and Klarion retreating back to his room not long after. His appearance had been a cause of concern for Zatanna. Every time he came out he somehow looked more and more unhealthy, not that he had looked healthy before by any means, but this was different. His eyes were sunken, always bloodshot with dark circles under them. His cheeks were hollowed, casting shadows over his face. The inhibitor collar stuck out so prominently on his neck, making it look heavier on his slender neck. His hands showed hints of the bruises he had obtained in the battle and his nails were still sharp and pitch black. The clothes he wore were always too big for him making him look even more haggard. Strangest of all, Klarion’s hair was not styled in its usual stuck up horns. Instead it was loose, curled and dishevelled. He just looked exhausted, all the time. Like no amount of sleep would make him less so. 

Zatanna vividly recalled the fourth and last time Klarion had come out of his room, three days ago. It was after the team had finished their training session of that day, they had all eight of them been heading to the kitchen. They had all been conversing with one another, but all sounds quickly died when they walked in and saw Klarion standing there. Klarion had been busy peeling a mandarin and no one noticed the shakiness in his hands while he did so. The team had been brutal, shooting Klarion distrustful glares and purposefully not coming close to him. Then the comments started and Zatanna began noticing how Klarion’s hands were shaking more and more violently. Zatanna had seen the moment when he given up his fight with himself to make an effort to interact in some way. He had blinked for a long moment after what Zatanna considered a frankly unwarranted comment about his familiar from Artemis. He had tears in his eyes when he opened them and he went back to his room without a word, mandarin in his right hand. 

She had felt so guilty, watching his retreating form, but she wasn’t brave enough to go after him, or reprimand her teammates for it. Zatanna knew that isolating Klarion and treating him like a problem to be avoided was not going to end well. The only other team member that reflected her sentiment was Kaldur, but he was also being discreet about his feelings. Zatanna also knew that M’gann felt the same, though her feelings of contempt overpowered her usually sympathetic attitude.

Zatanna put her book down in her lap and started paying attention to the conversation. After several minutes of her team members essentially complaining about the new resident, they moved onto their training and what they had gotten up to that day. It turned mundane quite quickly, so Zatanna immediately went back to her book, drowning out the conversing voices. Though it wasn’t long before Kaldur came into the common room, his usual unreadable expression gracing his face.

“Batman, Green Arrow and Black Canary, will be arriving shortly and they have asked for our presence in the hall.” He said sternly. The Team nodded. They all dropped what they had been doing in the living room and began shuffling to the larger hall. Zatanna brought her book with her, walking slightly behind. 

As they walked in, the zeta tube was lit up, informing them that Batman, Green Arrow and Black Canary had indeed arrived. Batman walked with purposed towards where the holographic was. The Team went to stand across from Batman, while Green Arrow and Black Canary were standing not far behind Batman. A holographic keyboard appeared in front of Batman, followed by a holographic screen. Batman started typing for a few seconds and then a file with a picture of Klarion popped up. Zatanna felt all the faces of the Team drop.

“Your next assignment will be given in the next few days, but until then the League has found a bit more information on Klarion, that we felt was important for you to know.” Batman explained, not for a moment wavering from his serious tone. There were a few eye rolls, some sighs and a even a growl, from who, Zatanna didn’t know. She focused her attention on Batman ready to listen. “First, while he is considered immortal, we have determined that Klarion’s age may fall between 17 and 20, the more likely age being 18.”

There were skeptic looks shot Batman’s way, a few raised eyebrows. 

“Second, he is much more powerful than we initially thought. According to Dr. Fate, there are two levels of power that we have to account for, the chaos magic and his own natural magic. Both have been blocked off, one with the Belle Reve collar and the other with the gold bands Fate placed on him when he arrived. He is virtually powerless right now.” 

This sparked Zatanna’s interest. She knew Klarion was extremely powerful, but she had never realised or thought that he would need two forms of restrains to block his magic off entirely.  
Most only needed the one. She noticed how the team reacted to the statement that Klarion was powerless. Powerless meant vulnerable, meaning easier to approach without any consequences. Green Arrow seemed to pick up on it as well, interjecting before Batman could continue.

“He isn’t helpless though. We know for a fact that he can defend himself without his magic. So leave him alone and don’t needlessly provoke him.” Green Arrow said. The team nodded a little too quickly. Black Canary eyes them slightly, crossing her arms over her chest. 

“And the third matter, his cat. The League has decided that until he reveals some information or at least proves that he can behave here, it will stay on the Watchtower. We are keeping it in a magical cage, Dr. Fate has reassured us that they are unable to communicate.” Zatanna cringed inwardly at Batman’s words. She didn’t need to know a lot about familiars to understand that cutting Teekl off from Klarion, not only physically but mystically, was borderline cruel. It made her skin crawly slightly. “Any questions?”

The team stayed silent, some scowling and glaring at a fixed point in front of them, others looking passive and uncomfortable at times. Zatanna had spiritual and magic related questions that she didn’t think Batman or Green Arrow or Black Canary could answer, so she too stayed quiet. 

“Alright. I will come back tomorrow with your next assignment. Robin and Aqualad, a word in private before I leave.” Batman said gesturing to the far wall, supposedly out of ear shot of the group. Aqualad and Robin both nodded, proceeding to follow Batman to said wall. The rest of the team stood and waited with Black Canary and Green Arrow. The silence was eventually broken by Wally’s irritated voice.

“Well at least the criminally insane wizard boy can’t have his weird cat with him.” Wally said in a dismissive tone.

“Still, I don’t trust him being here at all, even with no magic.” Artemis chimed in, her tone reflecting that distrust. Superboy seemed to agree with her, nodding at her words.

“We’re the ones who have to live with him.” Superboy murmured gesturing at M’gann and Zatanna. M’gann looked slightly nervous, her hands were fidgeting. Superboy seemed to sense this and put an arm around her shoulders, comforting her.

“And Zatanna even shares a wall with him! He’s evil, he should be locked up in Belle Reve or even Arkham!” Artemis added in a heated tone. The rest of the team seemed to agree, nodding their approval. Zatanna inclined her head slightly, looking on at her teammates.

“He’s been quiet so far.” Zatanna said softly. The others seemed to be taken aback at her words, looking at her with puzzled expressions. Wally looked like he was about respond, but Black Canary decided to interject. 

“Guys, I know this is a... difficult situation, but we need Klarion to tell us what he knows about The Light. If you avoid him like the plague it won’t work.” Canary said stepping past Green Arrow. “Please do your best to tolerate him, maybe get him to do activities with you? Like training for example.” A rage erupted from the team at her words.

“No why?!”

“He can’t train with us!”

“It’s not our fault he’s being anti social!”

“He only ever glares at us when he comes out!”

A few more things were said, but Zatanna drowned it out. Instead, her attention was drawn to a small noise behind them. She turned her head very slowly, trying not to draw attention to herself. She turned enough to see the hall way that led to the bedrooms in her peripheral vision. There she saw the tips of black nailed fingers and higher up a few black curls. Klarion was standing out of view in the hall, seemingly listening to what was being said about him. She only saw him for another second, before the finger tips and curls disappeared behind the wall once more. She strained her ears and heard the faintest disappearing footsteps. As she turned her head back towards the group, their voices began to drown back in. Batman, Kaldur and Dick had made their way back to the group without her noticing, their voices added into the mix as well. 

“We will do what we can, but we cannot make any promises of any information for the moment.” Kaldur said, a hint of insecurity in his words. Batman nodded at this, signalling that we was going to make his departure and then did so, leaving the team with Green Arrow and Black Canary. 

“Are you sure you don’t have any questions?” Green Arrow asked cautiously. Everyone shook their heads, scowls gracing some faces, passiveness gracing others. The atmosphere was as hostile as ever, all focussed on the one person in the cave who was not present in that moment. It was...sad in Zatanna’s mind. Green Arrow nodded, turning to look at Black Canary.

“Alright then. We’ll be around for the next few days.” Black Canary said softly. The team nodded, their moods slightly uplifted. Each team member began dispersing, going back to their own activities. Zatanna made a beeline for her bedroom, feeling uncomfortable and tense. The sounds of her teammates voices were drowning once again as she walked away towards the hallway. Before she could reach the hallway to the bedrooms, she picked up on footsteps speeding towards her.

“Hey Zee!” Ah Dick then. Zatanna winced slightly. The last thing she wanted today was to talk to Dick alone. They were exes now, having dated for close to two years, but ultimately deciding that they were not right for each other. Their break up had hurt a lot, more so for Zatanna than Dick. If she was honest with herself, she hadn’t been ready to end the relationship, but agreed nonetheless. Six months later she had finally moved on, having thrown herself into her school work over the summer. Her work and lack of want to socialise after her break up had payed off, as she would be graduating early that December. She stopped in her tracks and turned around to face her ex. Steeling her nerves she tried to make a slightly uplifted face. Dick stopped a few steps in front of her, offering Zatanna a sympathetic smile.

“Listen I was wondering... if it gets too weird with... you know... the insane wizard child... I’m sure Batman wouldn’t mind if you stayed with us for some time.” Dick said softly. Zatanna raised her eyebrows, not at all expecting this. 

“Thank you Dick, but... it’s fine honestly. Klarion hasn’t been much of a problem so far.” Zatanna said, trying her best to even out her voice. “Besides, I don’t think it’s really smart. You know... because of us.” She noticed how Dick’s face fell and he looked a little dejected. Zatanna felt a twinge of guilt and put her hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, but it just doesn’t feel right for me.” Dick nodded and Zatanna quickly retracted her hand. 

“I understand, but still... if it gets too much, you’re always welcome.” Dick said with a small smile. Zatanna returned the smile.

“Thank you.” 

And with that Zatanna walked away. She made a beeline for her bedroom, taking large strides as she went. She shook herself a little bit, trying to relax herself after the events that had transpired in the last half an hour. Seeing as the team’s next mission was only the next day, she had time to keep to herself, practice some small spells and do some research into new territories of magic. It was what she loved to do in her spare time since her normal school work was mostly finished. 

It was eerily quiet in the resident’s hallway. Zatanna had half expected Klarion to still be standing there, but he wasn’t. Instead it seemed like he had retreated back to his room when the team was talking about him. Her steps echoed as she walked towards the second last door of the hall. The first door was Kaldur’s, second was Conner’s, third was M’gann’s, fourth was Zatanna’s and now... fifth was Klarion’s. 

When she had told the team that Klarion had been quiet, she had been telling the truth... to an extent. In the six days that he had been there, she had heard a few sounds. They were not hostile, like what the team would assume. No, instead they were sounds that resembled laboured breathing and whimpers of pain. Zatanna had never been entirely sure if she had actually heard it, straining her ear towards the wall she shared with Klarion. Occasionally, she managed to catch the sound again, but most times it went unbearably quiet on the other side of the wall. 

When Zatanna reached her door, she inclined her head slightly toward the fifth door. She held her breath, trying to listen. There was a consistent droning from the machines in the mountain, making it harder for her to actually pick up any other noise. But amidst all the other sounds, Zatanna picked up on laboured breathing again. The moment she heard it, it was gone the next. Almost like Klarion was aware that he was being listened to.

Zatanna quickly straightened, suddenly very self conscious of herself. She slammed the control panel next to her door and hurried into her room. A strange feeling was surfacing in her chest and Zatanna couldn’t quite comprehend what it was. It was like a mixture of guilt and frustration, directed at herself but also at the witch boy who inhabited the next room. 

As the door closed behind her, Zatanna tip toed to the wall that she shared with Klarion and pressed her ear to the wall. In the back of her mind, she knew she was violating his privacy in a way, but under the circumstances she felt compelled to confirm what she had heard in the hall. She held her breath and listened. Silence overwhelmed her room and all she could hear was her own heart beat pounding in her ears. After about a minute, there was something. The faintest whimper on the other side of the wall. It sounded... pained or desperate... Zatanna wasn’t entirely sure. The walls were quite thick after all. 

Zatanna listened closely for another minute before she pushed herself off the wall. It had been entirely silent on the other side, adding to her thought that Klarion was aware that he was being listened too. She felt uneasy and suddenly cold all over. A weight fell on her chest as her mind wandered to everything surrounding Klarion. The way the team and the league treated spoke about him, how he was isolated in this cave. If she was honest with herself, Zatanna didn’t see anyone on the team approaching him unless they absolutely had too. That thought made Zatanna worry. She knew deep down that she had to do something, at least make more of an effort with her knew neighbour, but the memory of that fateful night on Roanoke Island and every confrontation she and Klarion have had, made it impossibly difficult. 

Zatanna’s inner conflict manifested into a storm in her chest, both raging and calm. She ran a hand through her hair and gripped it lightly. She didn’t know what to do

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading  
> Feedback is always welcome :)


	4. IV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tw: depression, anxiety, description of injury  
> This is a little sad, like always.  
> I hope you enjoy :)

At around mid day of his eighth day in the cave, Klarion lay in bed, curled up on his good side, staring blankly at the opposite wall. It was dark in the room, the only real light coming from the alarm clock on the floor next to the bed. Not that there was anything to light up in the room besides it’s inhabitant in the first place. 

Klarion wasn’t sure how long he had been laying there. At one point he had slept, at another he had had a panic attack and slept again. About what he had had the panic attack, Klarion couldn’t remember now. Likely it was that he thought about something, the Light or Teekl or the Team or the League, and his mind had started spiralling out of control. It was unpleasant most of the time, as those four things was all he thought about constantly. His mind just refused to stay blank or at least think about something else. 

Tears started to well up in Klarion’s eyes, causing him to let out a frustrated sigh. He was so sick of crying. All he had done since he had arrived was cry. It mainly stemmed out of him constantly being in blinding pain. Klarion couldn’t move his severely bruised arm without a knife sharp pain shooting throughout every part of his arm. His broken ribs wouldn’t allow for him to sit up straight most of the time. His leg hurt significantly less than his upper body, but he still struggled to walk correctly. All of his physical frustrations piled onto his already fragile psyche, causing him to rip himself apart mentally.

As a few tears started falling he angrily wiped them away with a growl. Klarion scrunched his eyes closed, willing the tears to disappear. He grasped his hair with a furious grip and buried his face into the pillow. His mind felt heavy and clouded, like he was stuck in an endless thick fog he couldn’t get out of. It didn’t matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t find his way out. A coldness blossomed in his heart and it spread all over his chest. It made Klarion shudder. He felt afraid.

Klarion remembered how he had felt the same cold and fear when Dr. Fate had finally made his appearance during that fateful battle with the heroes. Seeing the bright yellow light shining over the battle field had instilled a bone deep terror in him. He had realised in that moment that he wouldn’t be able to escape this. Tears leaked out of his eyes and onto the pillow when he recalled that terror. He could still see all those heroes closing in on him, bathed in Nabu’s golden light. 

Klarion’s breath hitched at the thought of the coldness he had felt when he had been defeated. When he had been laying on the ground bleeding out. The only thing he had been aware of was the coldness spreading from his many wounds and Teekl close by. Then the inhibitor collar came on and he felt a pain he had not felt in so many years. Everything had become a haze after that, only Teekl’s paw on his forehead reminding him that he was still alive in the vast coldness that he was drowning in. That coldness had returned to drown him again in his isolation. The sounds of the battle ringed in his ear and his breathing sped up. Klarion sat up quickly, ignoring the agony his ribs caused and pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes. He took a deep and shuddering breath.

“Stop it you idiot. Stop it.” Klarion whispered shakily to himself. 

He pushed his hands in his eyes slightly harder before wrapping his arms around his bruised, slender shoulders. The thought of Teekl made his heart ache terribly. They had been kept apart for the month of his captivity and the darkest part of himself told him that it would stay that way forever. Because of the inhibitor collar and Dr. Fate’s gold cuffs, Klarion couldn’t feel Teekl. Their bond felt as though it had been cut off. A few tears fell and he hugged himself tighter. He wished he could hold his precious familiar, he missed her dearly and wanted her back desperately. Without Teekl, his mind stayed in that cold fog. He wasn’t always able to get out of it without his familiar to guide him through the chaos that sometimes overtook his thoughts. Klarion closed his eyes and breathed deeply, doing his best to clear his addled mind. The raging sounds in his head started to quiet down and settle.

When he opened his eyes, he was met with the darkness of his bedroom. The emptiness was almost comforting to Klarion now. Crowds made him uncomfortable, they always had. It was one of the reasons he started actively avoiding the communal areas of the cave. Being surrounded by the kid heroes made him feel more isolated than he already was. He always happened to be in the kitchen when all of them were coming there for whatever reason. Every time he left feeling dejected and sad. Klarion knew that the young heroes disliked him, some had very good reasons to, but it hadn’t occurred to him that they would hate him so openly. And he felt idiotic because of it.

As Klarion sat on his bed starting at his door, the hunger pains he had been experiencing for the past few days flared up at the thought of the kitchen. He hadn’t eaten in almost four days and even when he had it was only fruit and water, since it didn’t require any cooking. The kitchen was filled with technology that Klarion was not at all used to. He could usually feed himself or keep his energy up with his magic, as he always had. But with his magic blocked he had to physically eat, something he wasn’t at all used to. The technology only made it worse, as it forced him to make the harsh realisation that he was more maladjusted than he thought. 

The more Klarion thought about it, the hungrier he became, to the point where it felt like his torso might break in half from hunger. Steeling his nerves he braced himself and stood up. He groaned when he stood up straight, feeling the sharp pull on his damaged ribs. Klarion reassured himself that the Team had been away on a mission since the day before, meaning that the coast was clear. He could roam around the cave and get something to eat undisturbed for once. 

Klarion cautiously made his way to the wardrobe, where his shoes were. It was cold in the cave and he didn’t want to walk around with bare feet. He already wore a pair of black sweatpants and a dark red sweater that barely managed to get over the inhibitor collar. Klarion held his breath as he bent over to pull the shoes on. His broken ribs grated together slightly as he did and his severely bruised left shoulder refused to function properly no matter how hard he tried. 

After several minutes of struggling, Klarion successfully pulled his shoes on and once again stood up straight with a groan. His left arm felt extremely heavy, the bruises seemingly adding excess weight to it. Most of his left side felt this way in fact, having been hit the hardest when Klarion was defeated. Klarion rubbed his left side a little bit under his sweater, feeling the heat that radiated from the broken ribs. His skin felt feverish where he was injured or bruised, a stark contrast to the rest of him that was normally a much cooler temperature. It felt strange, but Klarion did his best to ignore it.

He limped towards his door, actively avoiding looking at the mirror as he went. He didn’t want to look at himself, he was already very aware that his appearance wasn’t great. Last he checked, he looked worse than when he has arrived, the eight days of little food and constant crying taking a toll on him. Looking at his injuries in the mirror when he figured out how to use the shower, had triggered an anxiety attack so strong he had sat under the stream of water for an hour. The inhibitor collar had stayed on of course, it was conveniently waterproof, meaning it never really had to come off. So yes, he avoided mirrors when he could. 

Klarion pressed the panel next to his door and it slid open allowing the light of the hallway to pour into the room. Klarion winced slightly, his eyes not used to the bright light. He poked his head into the hallway, just to make sure he was truly alone. Once he was satisfied he carefully walked down the hallway towards the large entrance of the cave. All he could hear was the consistent droning of the machines that powered the cave. It had become a sort of comfort to Klarion. 

As he walked, he felt the tension in his body slowly bleed out of his body. The knowledge of the kid heroes not being in the vicinity made Klarion less and less uncomfortable with every step. As he reached the end of the resident’s hall, he looked towards a room in the corridor to his right. It was a room he had discovered on the third night of his being in the cave. He had only looked through the slightly opened door and had seen so many things. Mainly old instruments, which had peaked his interest. He sighed and made his way to the large hall. 

Klarion walked slowly through the large hall towards the kitchen. He looked around himself, taking in his empty surroundings. Every step he took echoed, even thought he wasn’t wearing his typical boots that made noise on any surface. He missed his suit as well sometimes, he missed the security that it gave him. Klarion gaze lingered on the zeta tubes and then on the hanger door he had entered the cave in on the opposite end of the large hall. Any thoughts of escape he had had disappeared the longer he looked. 

Klarion shook his head and continued his short journey towards the kitchen, drowning out the empty cave as he went.  
____________________________________________________

“Dinah, I’m not sure knocking on his door and forcing him out will do any good.” Green Arrow said sternly. 

“I know Ollie, believe me, but we have to start getting him to talk.” Black Canary retorted. “While I have complete faith in the team’s abilities, they might benefit from me opening the conversation with Klarion.” Green Arrow briefly stopped walking, opening his mouth to respond, but ultimately deciding not to. He resumed walking next to his partner. “You don’t agree?”

“No no! You’re right. I’m just not sure how you can just “talk” to someone like Klarion.” Green Arrow said, punctuating the word talk. “Though with the team on their mission it’ll probably be easier for Klarion to open up.”

“Yes exactly. Now I’m just trying to figure out how to get him to come out of his room more often.” Black Canary said in a slightly frustrated tone. She suddenly felt Green Arrow’s hand grasp her bicep, forcing her to stop in her tracks right before they turned the corner into the large entrance hall. She was about to protest but Green Arrow spoke before she could.

“Maybe you won’t have to.” He whispered. Black Canary raised a questioning eyebrow. Green Arrow pointed at something and Black Canary’s gaze followed.

There in the large hall, was Klarion. He was slowly walking towards the kitchen area, looking around himself in a bit of a daze, completely ignorant to their presence. He looked a little worse for wear but nothing dramatic in their opinions. Black Canary made to go to Klarion and immediately talk to him, but she was once again stopped by Green Arrow.

“Wait. Don’t scare him away.” He whispered. Black Canary nodded and they stood there somewhat out of sight. They watched as he walked very slowly, seemingly taking in his surroundings. 

Eventually he entered the communal area where the kitchen was and they could no longer see him. Green Arrow and Black Canary looked at each other for a second, before nodding and very slowly and quietly following Klarion into the kitchen.

____________________________________________________

Klarion stood in the kitchen, starting to feel overwhelmed. All the modern technology was a little bit strange to him. This kitchen felt much more open and light in comparison to the one he grew up in. The one in Limbo, the one in his childhood home had always felt... dark and small, making one feel claustrophobic. Then again, all of Limbo Town made one feel that way... trapped in an endless- 

Klarion quickly shook his head, banishing those thoughts. Now was not the time to think about that vile place. A shiver went down Klarion’s spine. He didn’t want to think about Limbo in that moment. It wasn’t pleasant to think about. He took a deep breath and looked around the kitchen once again. He spotted the fruit bowl that he had frequented so often these last few days.

He walked towards it, admiring the array of vivid colours. He picked out what he understood to be an orange. It was like a larger version of the mandarin he had had a few days before. He held it in his hand, feeling the solid weight of it. After a few seconds he moved towards the bin and using his sharp black nails he started to peel the fruit. He recalled fondly how after peeling the mandarin, the scent of the juice had lingered under his nails for a few hours after. 

As Klarion focussed on his task, he wistfully thought about whether Teekl might enjoy the taste of orange. He smiled a small smile. The first genuine smile since his captivity. Thinking about Teekl also brought a small wave of sadness. Tears threatened to fall once again, so Klarion looked up, keeping them in his eyes. He sniffled and took a shaky breath, letting the rest of the world drown out once again.

As he finished peeling his orange, he heard a small noise. He was too far gone in his ignorance of everything around him to react. 

“Klarion?” 

His heart lurched and he spun around at an inhuman speed. His heart was pounding so fast it felt like it was trying to break out of his rib cage. When his vision cleared enough for him to see who had called his name, his races even faster. There, standing not a few metres away from him, was Black Canary and Green Arrow standing side by side in full battle garb. Klarion tensed and began to shake uncontrollably. 

In that moment all he wanted to do was grab Teekl and fall into a portal. But his familiar was not there and he couldn’t conjure a portal to fall into.


	5. V

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tw: accidental self harm, anxiety, a little depression  
> This is dialogue heavy so bare with me. Enjoy!!

Before Klarion understood what was going on, he was in a dim lit room, sat on a dark green sofa across from Black Canary and Green Arrow. He had pulled his knees up to his chest, wrapping his arms around them, ignoring the pain it caused him. He fidgeted with his hands and looked around the room, avoiding eye contact with the two League members in front of him. He felt unbelievably uncomfortable, but something in the back of his mind told him it would only get worse. It was only when Green Arrow cleared did Klarion finally look in their general direction.

“Klarion. We wanted to take this opportunity while the Team is still away to have a conversation alone with you.” 

Black Canary spoke in a tone that Klarion couldn’t quite recognise, but he knew that it irked him. 

“And this isn’t meant in any way to attack you. We just want to help you.” 

Silence. Klarion looked down at his hands.

“Alright, we first wanted to ask you how you are feeling, when you were in hospital, when you were-“

“Dying?” Klarion interrupted poignantly. 

“When you were recovering, you didn’t answer any questions we asked. So, how do you feel?” 

“Fine.” It was barely above a whisper.

“Are you sure? Your injuries were quite severe.” Green Arrow chimed in.

Klarion didn’t answer, instead he looked away towards the door. Canary tilted her head.

“Klarion?”

“They are fine.” Klarion said a bit louder. 

“Alright. And are you settling in well? Are you comfortable?” Canary asked.

In truth Klarion was not at all settled. Every time he came out of his room he was met with hostility and not so subtle hatred. So no, he wasn’t settling in well and he wasn’t comfortable. But he didn’t want anyone to know that. He gave them a curt nod and left it at that.

“Okay. Before we go onto something a bit more serious, do you have any questions for us?” Canary asked calmly.

Klarion hesitated, but then turned his head back to the heroes.

“Teekl.” He whispered.

“Your cat?” Canary asked.

Klarion nodded.

“It’s fine, it’s staying-“

“She.” Klarion said angrily.

“I’m sorry?” Canary raised an eyebrow.

“Teekl, is a she.” He said, finally making eye contact with the blonde.

“She, is being kept on the Watch Tower for now. The League is still debating on whether it’s the right decision for you to have her at the moment.” 

Klarion’s breath hitched. There it was again. Affirmation that his familiar would be kept far away from him. His heart beat sped up and he started shaking uncontrollably. Green Arrow and Black Canary seemed to pick up on his increasing anxiety. 

“Is something wrong?” Green Arrow asked, the smallest bit of concern bleeding through.

“I-I cannot feel her. I’m just... worried.” Klarion said shakily. 

“You don’t have to be. She’s doing just fine.” Green Arrow said, doing his best to sound convincing. Somehow Klarion didn’t believe him. 

“Alright.” Canary sighed slightly and leaned in a fraction closer to the witch boy in front of her. “Now onto the more serious topic.” 

Klarion’s eyebrows knitted together in anger. Did they not think the injuries they caused were a serious topic? Considering that it had been a month since he received them and half his body was still coloured with a livid shade of blue. A blue one should never see on themselves. And Teekl. They had separated him from his only support system, the only being who could make this ordeal bearable. They cut off the precious bond between witch and familiar, and didn’t seem to care about his suffering because of it. 

Klarion was suddenly brought out of his thoughts when he felt a sharp pain in his left wrist. He looked down to see what had caused it, bringing his hands behind his knees, out of view of the heroes. It seemed that in his anger one of his sharp nails had cut his wrist. He hadn’t even realised he was doing it until the pain kicked in. Small droplets of blood were starting to run down his wrist and forearm into his jumper, so he subtly pressed down on the wound and did his best to play it off.

Black Canary and Green Arrow had not noticed it would seem, as they continued in their questioning.

“The Light.” Black Canary said cautiously. Klarion’s eyes darkened, his expression cold. “We know that you are a member or at least are working for them.”

He stayed silent. Canary looked at him almost expectantly, Green Arrow mirroring her expression.

“We need to know what you know. Their attack on the Justice League three years ago has made it clear to us that they are a legitimate threat. They are hurting innocent people.” Canary explained. “You controlled us when Savage took over our minds, we need to know what the Light is planning.”

“Or at least who the members of the Light are.” Green Arrow added. 

There was a terrible awkward silence that followed. Klarion did his best not to catch their eye but their gazes were merciless and bore into him. The things the League wanted to know, he couldn’t just give them up. In the world of villains, the members of the Light were a notoriously carefully guarded secret. Now that the League knew that Vandal Savage was a member and had suspicions that Klarion was a member as well (which he was), only five out of the seven members were still a secret. He knew better than to give that up. If the League started targeting the Light members specifically, everyone would know exactly who had given up that information. His skin crawled at the thought of what Savage would do to him in his vulnerable state if that happened.

And as for their plans, Klarion really didn’t know all that much anymore. Yes he was an invaluable member of the Light, but that mainly stemmed from him being an immeasurable source of mystic power. On account of his age and temperament, the Light only involved him when he was needed. While he could easily kill every member of the Light with a snap of his fingers with no resistance, they knew how to manoeuvre Klarion in a way that benefitted their agenda. He had been a glorified distraction most of the time and his magics had been used to make the staro tech. And since that New Years Eve when he had escaped with Savage, Klarion’s involvement had stayed... dormant. He followed their orders, always had since he joined out of wanting to create chaos. But that didn’t mean he knew everything they were planning. 

From listening to the two heroes in front of him, he understood that in the League’s mind, he was the key to taking down the Light. How disappointed they would be when they figured out he wouldn’t be. 

“I have nothing to say...” Klarion said softly. Canary sighed.

“We hope that you will cooperate eventually. This is a serious matter.” She said in a slightly more assertive tone. “Until you decide to tell us something or at least prove that you can behave around the Team, you won’t get your cat back, I’m sorry.” 

He knew she wasn’t. Nor did Green Arrow evidently. His chest ached and his head began to pound. 

“In the mean time, you’ll be expected to interact with the Team, train with them once your injuries have healed more.” Green Arrow stated. Klarion’s head snapped up. That got his attention. 

“I would rather not.” Klarion simply said, a mixture of fear and disdain bleeding through. 

“You don’t have a choice. If you’re going to stay here under the Justice League’s protection, you’ll be expected to do something other than mope around.” Green Arrow’s voice was riddled with annoyance. Canary put a hand on his forearm and gave him a stern look. She turned back to Klarion, leaning in once more. Klarion leaned back in his chair, trying to put distance between himself and the blonde.

“There are several things you can do, training with the team is one of them. I know that Zatanna could use help from another magic user to improve on her own skills.” Canary said. From what Klarion could recall, the baby mage had so far been the least hostile toward him. In fact she was barely hostile at all. She always looked pensive when he was around, never saying anything and barely betraying any emotion. If there was anyone on the team who had the most reason to hate him, it was Zatanna. When he had controlled the Justice League and seen that Nabu had gained a new host that was a grown man (and not a young girl), it hadn’t taken him long to deduce who was stuck in that God awful helmet. It was the closest he had felt to regret in a long long time. Even though they were on opposite sides of an eternal struggle, Klarion could always admit that Giovanni Zatara was an admirable sorcerer. 

Maybe, just maybe he could make amends with Zatanna. She was the only one on that team of children who was worth his time and energy. But he wasn’t sure yet. He was too tired to think. Too vulnerable and hurt to think about magic.

“There was also one more thing.” Canary said trying to catch Klarion’s eye. Out of tiredness, he entertained her and made eye contact. “I speak for most of us when I say that you are a little bit of a mystery. There is very little known about you before you started wreaking havoc. So what I’m saying is we would like to know more about you and your past.”

Klarion felt his nails dig into his palms. Hard. Drawing blood. No. Absolutely not. His past was the last thing he wanted to discuss with anyone. He barely discussed it with Teekl. He actively avoided thinking about it. 

“No.” He said venomously. 

He felt his violent temper begin to flare inside him. They had no right to even bring it up. They had already brought him to his lowest, injured him horribly. For the first time in a month he felt genuinely angry, and if he could, he would unleash all of his chaotic power on them. Klarion could feel his chaos magic inside him, swirling in a furious hurricane, begging to be released. This hurricane had sharp edges and it was trying to claw its way free, but the blocks that had been put on him stayed strong. 

Before he could manifest his internal anger on the exterior, a voice sounded in the large hall beyond the room they were in.

“Recognised...” 

Panic quickly replaced anger. The baby heroes had returned from their mission. His mind was all over the place and in a state of chaos from being questioned bay Black Canary and Green Arrow. Klarion didn’t think he had it in him go receive insults and hostile looks. The question about his past had caught him off guard, leaving him even more vulnerable than usual. 

“We will continue this conversation another time. Just know that you can always speak to us if you need to.” Black Canary said softly. Klarion knew he likely wouldn’t be speaking to them, he didn’t trust any of them. Their false sympathy and prying questions didn’t sit right with him. 

He remembered how his wrist and now his palms were bleeding, so he pulled his sleeves up to cover the damage. The last thing he needed was the Leaguers or the Team touching him in any capacity. 

The two heroes stood up from their seats and gestures towards the door. Klarion slowly uncurled from his spot on the dark green armchair and stood up on shaky legs. They all stood there for a moment before Green Arrow walked past Klarion and opened the door. He walked out and Canary gestured for him to go in front of her. 

Klarion steeled his nerves as best he could and slowly stepped out of the dim lit room. The light hit his eyes hard, his eyes once again more used to darkness than brightness. His injured arm shook as his anxiety began to surge. He really didn’t want to interact with the team. Hopefully he could slip past. How wrong he was. 

The whole team was standing in the large hall, looking exhausted and worn but happy nonetheless. Canary and Green Arrow walked past him towards the team, seemingly leaving him to his own devices. Klarion stood there awkwardly, simply looking in the general direction of the team. 

He noticed the baby mage, Zatanna, standing slightly apart from the Team. That felt sort of odd in Klarion’s mind. She looked worn, slightly annoyed and her uniform was stained in some places. Her long raven hair was disheveled and she had started pulling off her usually pristine white gloves. Why Klarion was fixating on her in that moment he didn’t really know. Likely because the two Leaguers had mentioned her specifically earlier. 

Her head suddenly turned and their eyes met. Klarion straightened his back almost immediately, his already shaking injured arm shaking even more. He expected her eyes to narrow and her annoyance to become irritation. But that didn’t happen. Instead, Zatanna’s eyes softened and the smallest smile graced her ethereal face. 

Klarion felt his body relax a little, the panic he had felt dissipating gradually. He felt the corners of his lips pull upward involuntarily. He hadn’t thought he would be able to bare this experience without Teekl

But maybe. Just maybe, Zatanna could make his captivity the slightest bit bearable.   
____________________________________________________

When Zatanna exited the zeta tube, having returned from the successful mission, she finally allowed her irritation to bleed through her normally passive demeanour. Having not slept for over 24 hours and depleted her magic significantly, she was exhausted. She was particularly annoyed at most of the team. A disagreement had broken out with regards to the necessity of her magic during the mission.

Most of the team had decided that her power would be noticed too quickly by the villainous sorcerers, putting the whole mission in danger. She had argued that they would need her to defeat them, she being the only one who could actually subdue them. Zatanna had been overruled though, and she had been told to stay on the bioship. 

The team should have listened to Zatanna.

The sorcerers had proved too difficult to defeat without her and she had needed to step in. The team had take cover not far away from where the sorcerers had stood their ground. So began a long and tedious battle where Zatanna completely drained herself, something that hadn’t needed to happen if the Team had listened to her. Once they had subdued the sorcerers, they had returned to the cave, none wanting to admit that they had made a mistake and made this mission much longer than it had to be.

Zatanna loved her teammates dearly, but in these kinds of moments, she questioned their characters a bit.

As she had been taking off her gloves she distanced herself slightly from the group. Zatanna wanted nothing more than to get out of her uniform and pass out. She noticed that Green Arrow and Black Canary had been making their way over to the team and from her position, she could see Klarion standing alone by the door that led to the “therapy” room. 

He looked just as tired as she felt. It had been several days since she had seen him out and he didn’t look much better than last time. He looked slightly panicked, which was understandable seeing as the whole team and two leaguers were present. 

Not a moment later she caught his eye and she felt the irritation she had felt not long ago, drain out of her a little bit. She didn’t quite know why. Zatanna saw Klarion’s demeanour soften, the tight tension loosening slightly. Then, she smiled a small smile. Something she didn’t expect Klarion of all people would bring out of her.

Most shocking of all he smiled back. It was barely visible, but it was there. 

Zatanna didn’t know what to make of this interaction. An interaction that no one besides them two had seen. She was far too tired to think too much into it. All she knew was that she had smiled at Klarion and he had smiled back. It could mean something but also not. Did she want it to mean something? Did he? 

Before she could get too lost in her own head, a voice she recognised as Artemis called to her. And so the eye contact broke, leaving Zatanna wondering about what had just happened between herself and the defeated Lord of Chaos.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooo... are those... feelings I see...?


	6. VI

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some Zatanna pov :) lots of cute emotions and stuff. It’s a bit slow but we are developing something here.
> 
> Tw: description of bruises

Time passed strangely for Zatanna nowadays. Between her commitments to the team and school, she very rarely had time to herself. And with Klarion living in the cave it felt as though the team was there all the time. Whenever she left her room to go train or to go to school, there was always someone who wasn’t a resident there. Even League members came by way more often than usual. 

The why was quite obvious. It was to watch Klarion and get as much information out of him as possible. In the month that Klarion has been living in the cave, had been living next to her, Zatanna still barely saw him out and about. When he was out of his room, he was usually surrounded by either members of the Team or members of the League. It made her uncomfortable, that the Team and the League were displaying such hostility to someone who was at his lowest. Zatanna understood why they were this way, but she didn’t want to partake in the hostilities. It was made clear to her that it wouldn’t get anything out of the witch boy.

Today though, she was alone in the cave except for Klarion. The rest of the team was away on a ‘mentor day’ with members of the Justice League. Essentially, all the members of the Team were spending a day or a few more doing the whole superhero shtick with their mentor. So that meant Robin with Batman, Miss Martian with Martian Manhunter, Aqualad with Aquaman, Superboy with Superman, Kid Flash with The Flash, Artemis with Green Arrow and Rocket with Icon. Zatanna was notably missing from that list for obvious reasons.

Whenever the team went away for these days, they always felt bad leaving Zatanna behind. They had suggested several times to seek out Dr. Fate so that he could be her mentor, but she had always shut them down very fast. While she knew that Dr. Fate would make an excellent teacher and mentor, she didn’t have the courage to look into her father’s lifeless eyes, to hear his voice overlapped with that of Nabu’s. She just wasn’t brave enough. Besides, in the three years that Zatara had been Dr. Fate, Zatanna’s skill had progressed a lot. She taught herself whenever she could, practiced constantly. 

Teaching herself, learning new and powerful magic had gotten her out of the depression she had experienced in the month that followed that night on Roanoke Island. That depression came back sometimes, but pushing her skills always made her feel better.

Zatanna looked to the framed picture of her and Zatara when she was about five years old. They were so happy then, so carefree. Zatara was smiling so big that his usually invisible dimples took up most of his cheeks. Zatanna had an equally big smile on her face in the picture. She mirrored that smile as she looked at it, recalling the happy memory, yet there was a lump forming in her throat. She took a deep breath and steeled herself. She had cried enough because of this picture alone, now was not the time. 

Looking at the clock Zatanna closed her notebook. It was currently was currently 3 in the afternoon and Zatanna needed a break from school work. She stood up quickly, feeling several joints pop as she went. She stretched her arms above her head and leaned back, arching her back. The cracks that came from the stretching felt heavenly. 

As Zatanna walked towards her door she felt a small chill run through her body. She quickly went to her wardrobe to pick out something warm to wear. She rummaged through the dark wardrobe, not really seeing what she was choosing. Not that she cared much, no one was in the cave anyways. She eventually pulled out a large white knit sweater with dark green details. She took a second to look at it before putting it on. Once it was over her head, Zatanna pulled her long black hair from inside the sweater, letting it fall down her back again. 

Zatanna walked away from her wardrobe, picking up her phone from the bed as she went. There were several notifications, text messages from a few school friends and some emails. She decided she could check all those later, stowing her phone in the pocket of her black sweatpants. Pressing the panel button, the door slid open and Zatanna walked out into the considerably brighter hallway. It was so quiet that Zatanna could hear her own heart beat as she walked. 

Zatanna wasn’t exactly sure where she was going, but she knew she just needed to walk around for a bit. Being cooped up in a dark room with no natural light for long periods of time wasn’t exactly good. When she thought of that, her mind wandered over to Klarion and how he had been spending really extended periods of time in his own room, alone. For someone who was in such a vulnerable state, being alone and isolated for so long couldn’t be healthy. 

Zatanna stopped walking and turned slightly to look back at Klarion’s door. She thought for a moment, maybe she could knock. Get him to come out since most of the team was gone. Maybe even converse with him? Would the team hate her for trying? Would Klarion even want to speak with her? While she wasn’t technically Dr. Fate’s protege, she was, as Nabu put it, a ‘vessel of Order’. Something Klarion probably wasn’t overly fond of. As she pondered on all of these questions, she slowly began making a move to walk towards Klarion’s door. 

She suddenly stopped when she heard a faint noise coming from the other direction. Not just any noise. It sounded like an instrument. The piano. 

Zatanna inclined her head towards the sound, trying to figure out where it was coming from. She found herself absentmindedly walking towards where she thought the music was coming from. As she walked down the resident’s hallways, the sound of the piano became louder. She became entranced at the melody as she went. 

It was full of sadness and longing. Longing for something that was. It was beautiful. 

She started closing in on the sounds. It was coming from a hall way adjacent to the walk way that led the the large main hall of the cave. Zatanna spotted a door that was the slightest bit open. As she neared it, the piano became even louder. It suddenly occurred to her that the whole team was away and there were no Leaguers supervising today other than Red Tornado, who himself was powered down in his apartment. So then who was playing? 

As she reached the door and cautiously opened it a fraction more, Zatanna had an epiphany. Her epiphany was realised upon seeing who was sitting at the piano. 

To her shock and surprise, Klarion sat on the bench, back straight and taught, playing away. His hand glided gracefully over the ivory keys. His sharp nailed fingers made elegant chords as he went. His body moved with his hands as he played, swaying with the melody of the song. She saw how his curled hair moved with him as he reached for the highest or lowest notes. He seemed... at ease... relaxed almost. It was the most at ease she had seen Klarion since he had been in the cave and well, ever. There was always tension that surrounded him when he was on the battlefield, making this something completely new.

Zatanna realised after a few seconds that Klarion was also singing. Singing impossibly softly, barely above a whisper. He sang beautifully, his voice right on the verge of high and low. A perfect middle. He sang with emotion and such passion. As Zatanna focused in on Klarion’s voice, she realised again that he sang in French. She didn’t understand a word he was saying, nor did she recognise the song, but she was entranced by it. Zatanna only spoke English and Italian, since she was part Italian herself.

As she listened, Zatanna pushed the door open a bit further, just enough for her to slip inside. She tip toed as quietly as possible, so as not to disturb the beautiful music. She slowly lowered herself down on the floor in front of a pillar, leaned back on it and pulling her knees to her chest. Zatanna leaned her chin on the tops her knees and wrapped her arms around them as well. When she was comfortable, Zatanna just listened and watched Klarion play in the middle of the room. She was about 10 meters away from where he sat at the piano, the large room allowed for a wonderful echo. 

As Zatanna watched Klarion’s hands and took in his singing she noticed the severe bruising on his left arm. He was wearing a t shirt for once instead of his usual sweatshirt, causing his arms to be exposed. It was still bright blue in some places, purple on the outside of the blue spots. There was a horrid reddish green around most of the rest of the arm where the bruises had healed. It seemed to run from his finger tip to his neck, the purplish edges of the still severe bruising peaking at the collar of the shirt. Zatanna wondered why it was taking so long to heal, after all it had been two months since the battle. A regular human would be mostly healed by now, even with the severe bruising Klarion suffered. It was strange.

It seemed a moment later that Klarion was reaching the end of the song, as a particularly emotional note escaped him as the piano intensified. In the moment, Zatanna thought she saw a flicker of something on Klarion’s skin and then a shimmer, but she couldn’t pin point exactly what she saw, so she ignored it. He held that note as the melody sped up, hitting the crescendo of the end and then fading into silence. Zatanna, still reeling from what she had just witnessed, released a breath she didn’t know was holding.

Klarion stayed still for several seconds, the only noticeable movement being his back moving with his breathing. Zatanna just stared, not quite sure what to do with herself now. She knew that she would likely scare the living day lights out of the witch boy if she made any sudden moves, but her curiosity and her want to break the ice with Klarion got the better of her.

“What song was that?” Zatanna asked as softly as possible.

Klarion almost jumped off the bench. He flinched so violently, turning towards her voice as he did. His bruised left arm slammed onto the keys for stability as he nearly fell off the bench. The loud off key sound bounced off the walls and reverberated all over the room. His breathing sped up a little from shock and his right hand went to grasp the part of his chest that housed his heart. No doubt his heartbeat had sped up significantly. He shook slightly as he made eye contact with her, the fear and shock evident in his dark eyes.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you... sorry.” Zatanna said sheepishly as she sat up on her knees. His tense stance didn’t change, if anything he became more rigid. Zatanna wanted to kick herself for disturbing him in his moment of ease. “You play beautifully.” She said, offering him a small smile. 

Klarion looked on at her, utterly confused and unsure of what to do. He swallowed nervously, his face contorting slightly oddly as he did. The hand clenched on his chest began to loosen and his shoulders dropped the slightest bit.

“T-thank you.” He whispered. Zatanna smiled slightly bigger. That was something. She sat back crossing her legs in front of her and dropping her a hands down to the floor. She wanted to appear as unthreatening as possible. Given their previous encounters on the battle field, it likely wouldn’t be hard. Klarion was leagues above her when it came to magical abilities. A Leaguer, she forgets who in the moment, had suggested to her that she could try and get Klarion to teach her some things, to get him out of his room more.

Baby steps. Now was not the time. 

“Would you like to sit?” Zatanna asked. She gestured to the floor. That seemed to shock Klarion more than her breaking the silence. His eyebrows rose and knitted in confusion. He seemed to deeply ponder on her question, not sure if this offer had a catch or not. 

Wow we really messed you up, Zatanna thought to herself sadly. 

Klarion looked down at the floor, slowly and very cautiously standing up from the piano bench. He took small steps towards where Zatanna was sitting, his gaze not for a moment leaving the floor. He eventually lowered himself to the ground, about three meters from where Zatanna herself was sat. He pulled his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, making himself as small as possible. He then put his chin on his knees, like Zatanna had, not minutes ago.

They sat there in silence for several minutes. It wasn’t an awkward silence, nor was it comfortable, it was just quiet. Klarion kept his eyes firmly on the ground, his long finger fidgeting with themselves. Zatanna just observed him, her gaze sometimes drifting to his injured arm, finding it difficult not to stare.

“I-I don’t actually know what the song is called... but I-I learned it a long time ago...” Klarion said softly, the usual childishness was absent, replaced instead with a deep sadness. He lifted his gaze from the floor, finally making eye contact with Zatanna once more. Zatanna nodded at his words. 

“You don’t remember?” She asked.

He shook his head. He seemed... embarrassed?

“Oh.” Zatanna responded. The quietness fell again. “And you speak French?”

Klarion’s face lit up slightly, in a way Zatanna didn’t think was possible. He nodded, the smaller ghost of a smile gracing his slender face.

“Its chaotic... yet structured... like the piano... I like it.” Klarion said, a hint of enthusiasm lacing his voice. Zatanna chuckled a little at his words.

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone describe the French language that way.” She said with a giggle. Klarion smiled a bit bigger, but he still regarded Zatanna warily, not entirely sure what to make of this exchange. 

A sound by the door alerted both of them to a presence. They both turned towards it. In the door way, was Wolf, peaking in sheepishly. Zatanna made a clicking noise and Wolf fully entered the room, displaying his full size. Klarion froze in terror at what he saw, his breathing become fast and shallow. As Wolf approaches the pair, Klarion started to back away, trying to put distance between himself and the enhanced canine. 

“On no no, you don’t need to be afraid of Wolf. He won’t hurt you I promise.” Zatanna said, trying her best to calm the frightened witch boy. When Wolf reached Zatanna, he plopped himself on the floor right next to her, dropping his large head in her lap. She laughed and started to run her hands through his soft white fur. She looked at Klarion, who had stopped backing away, but was no less afraid. “See? He’s a big softy. He’s actually like a massive dog.”

Wolf nuzzled his head into Zatanna’s stomach, opening his huge mouth to yawn as he did. He made the cutest noise in Zatanna’s mind when he did so, showing how he was really a lap dog at heart. She looked at Klarion again, who had come slightly closer again. 

“You can let him if you want. Usually he’s joined at the hip with Superboy, so you may not get another chance.” Zatanna said smiling at him. Klarion looked at her wide eyed, hesitating. He then very cautiously moved closer, inching towards them. He eventually was sat right in front of Zatanna, with Wolf in between them. Klarion raised his hand and very slowly lowered it towards Wolf. He hesitated once more, before finally placing his hand on the white fur. Klarion’s black nails contrasted interestingly with Wolf’s white fur. It was funny to look at. As Klarion became more comfortable stroking Wolf, the tension started to bleed out of him. The large white canine growled softly in approval, relishing in the attention of the two mages. Zatanna smiled again. “See, he’s just a big dog.”

Klarion let out a small laugh, surprising Zatanna. It was such a foreign thing to hear coming from Klarion. He put his injured arm on Wolf as well, leaning slightly closer.

“I’m more of a cat person myself... but this is still nice.” Klarion said, a hint of despair shining through. Zatanna knew instantly why. Teekl. She sighed knowingly, but still smiled at Klarion.

As he continued to pet Wolf and get lost in it, he looked the most relaxed he had been since he had arrived at the cave. Zatanna could sense the anxiety and despair that Klarion felt. She couldn’t really blame him, his emotions were justified. Now, seeing how he reacted to nearly everything with terror and fear, and his injuries seemingly taking an excruciatingly long time to heal, it shouldn’t be such a surprise that Klarion was so antisocial. Between being surrounded by his enemies, his magic being blocked entirely and his familiar being kept far away from him, he had the right to not want to be around anyone. 

Zatanna was determined, no matter how conflicted she felt, to be a good person. Klarion had spoken to her, answered her questions, smiled at her, even laughed. It may not have been much and it certainly wasn’t an indicator of what was to come, but this moment looked like it was a small reprieve for the beaten Lord of Chaos. Something that Zatanna knew, Klarion would need again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feelings, you gotta love em :)   
> The song that Klarion was playing is called “La Bohème” by Charles Aznavour, it’s a beautiful song, I recommend you listen and maybe even find translated lyrics if you don’t speak French so you can fully understand all the emotions going on.  
> I hope you enjoyed it!


	7. VII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yikes that took way longer than I expected, I’m so sorry. This was actually meant to be way longer but I cut it down and the rest will be it’s own separate chapter. This is a bit intense from beginning to end but I hope you enjoy this chapter!
> 
> Tw: self harm, anxiety attack, self hatred, depression

Klarion stared at himself in the mirror. He stood topless, exposing his vicious injuries to himself. On most days he couldn’t stand to look at them, but since Zatanna had seen him playing the piano while his arms were bare, he had felt more uneasy than usual. He had seen her staring at the bruises a few times while they were stroking the overgrown white canine. Whether Zatanna had intended it or not, he had felt very self conscious about his arms afterwards. He hadn’t had the courage to look at himself until a day after the encounter. 

Klarion hadn’t looked because we had tried to savour that sense of ease he had felt whilst playing the piano, but also whilst he had spoken with Zatanna. He hadn’t expected anyone from the Team to be kind to him, let alone speak to him in a way that wasn’t suspicious or hostile. He had to admit, it had felt nice. But the thoughts that constantly plagued him returned very quickly, destroying that brief tranquility, plunging him into that intrusive anxiety and depression he had developed since he had been defeated.

Now, he stood topless in front of his mirror, on the verge of hyperventilating. Klarion didn’t know why he did this to himself. He supposed it was the deep seated self hatred he felt towards himself that compelled him to look at his battered body. As he looked at himself that self hatred only grew stronger. His body was a mess of half healed bruises and reddish patches, his left arm being by far the worst of it. The bruises on that arm ran from his finger tip to his neck where the inhibitor collar rested. 

It looked like a mix of blue, purple and green ink had spilled over his arm, covering every available surface. In the places where he had bled internally, it looked like a light purplish red stained his skin. Klarion could also still make out where his ribs were broken or cracked. He understood why Zatanna had stared now, his arm still looked just as horrific as they had in the immediate aftermath of the battle... two months ago. 

Panic gripped Klarion’s heart very suddenly. Two months. Two months since the battle that nearly killed him and he still hadn’t completely healed from his injuries. His breathing sped up as his gaze went up and down his severely bruised arm. His eyes went from the inhibitor collar to the gold bands, his body beginning to shake uncontrollably. Tears began to form behind his eyes as he thought about his situation.

Magic blocked completely, injuries healing horrendously slowly and Teekl being kept from him. His eyes widened. This... couldn’t be a coincidence. His breath hitched and thick tears were on the verge of spilling over. He focused on his arm again, the ugliness of the bruises screaming vile things at him. The self hatred surged and as the tears finally spilled over his eyes, he started right in his own eyes in the mirror. Klarion’s breathing sped up to the point where his chest was hurting. 

Then, in a moment of intense self hatred, Klarion raised his right hand to his left shoulder, right where the lamp post had hit him and pressed his fist into it, hard. Tears cascaded down his face and he let out a small cry of pain. He didn’t stop pressing though, feeling his arm convulse with a fierce sharpness. Klarion closed his eyes tightly and cried out once more, his body shaking more violently. He felt his legs buckle and give out, falling to his knees in front of his mirror. Eventually, the self inflicted pain became too intense and Klarion pulled his hand away. 

Klarion stared at his reddened eyes in the mirror, attempting to regulate his breathing, but it was pointless. A dark voice in the back of his mind told him that this is how the heroes wanted him. Bound and injured, so he could stay weak and unthreatening. That same voice told him that this is what he deserved, that all of his sins from his past were catching up to him. He hadn’t thought it could be possible for him to feel more alone than he already had, but he had been wrong. He was entirely alone. It seemed that not matter what, everyone was against him. From his childhood in that claustrophobic town, to now in the Justice League’s captivity where they were supposed to be ‘helping’ him. 

As more tears blinded him, Klarion couldn’t help focussing on that god forsaken inhibitor collar again. He hated it. He hated it with every fiver of his being. It contained the very thing that was never meant to be. Chaos was not meant to pushed into a corner and caged, it was to volatile for such a thing. Klarion began to claw at the collar angrily, trying desperately to get it off.

“Get off. Get off. Get off. Get off. Get off.” He whispered to himself. 

More tears of frustration escaped him as tore at the metal. He knew it was pointless, but he was in no headspace to think logically. He let out a guttural cry and yanked the collar with all his remaining strength. The tears kept falling, never ending. His hands dropped down to his lap, abandoning the inhibitor collar. As he stared at it in the mirror once again, the anger bled away, replaced with despair. It sent a perverse sensation all across his body, making him feel utterly depressed from head to toe. 

Klarion began to sob, laboured breaths replacing his hyperventilation. He placed his right hand in front of him on the floor and brought is injured hand to rest right where his shoulder and neck met. He tried to ground himself, but that proved unbelievably hard. He let his heavy eyes close, dropping his chin to his chest. His curled hair fell over his forehead and shook with his body as he cried. 

He felt so alone. He missed Teekl so badly that it hurt his heart. It felt as if a hand was wrapped around it, slowly putting excruciating pressure on it. Usually when he felt this way, Teekl could talk him down, calm him, but he was alone. Klarion took a deep shaky breath and forced himself to look up at the mirror once more. He stared at a random point on his body and focussed on it, taking a series of shaky breaths. 

While there was no stopping the flow of tears, his breathing began to regulate after a time. Klarion let out a sigh if relief and wrapped his arms around himself. He looked into his own reddened eyes once more. This had to stop happening, this panic, this fear. It couldn’t be healthy for him to be so anxious and feel so heavy all the time. Klarion sighed once more and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. He sniffled a few times before dropping his hands to his lap again. 

Suddenly, something on his exposed skin, flickered. Klarion’s heart stopped.

“No...” Klarion whispered, terror overtaking his voice. His injured arm began to shake violently, every noise around him became deafeningly silent. His skin flickered again. For a few long seconds, he saw an ugly dark red stain his torso, his arms, before a shimmer made that red disappear. He could suddenly hear voices screaming at him. He could feel the horrifying heat and see the black smoke again...

Klarion shook his head quickly and whimpered, trying to banish those resurfacing thoughts. Or was it memories? 

There was a ringing in Klarion’s ears and it felt as though he had lost feeling in his extremities. He fell back onto his elbows, not really registering the pain it caused him. His eyes were wide and leaking tears at an even faster rate than before. His breathing had become shallow and shaky again, his chest constricting painfully as he crawled towards his bed. Klarion couldn’t think straight, all his thoughts became occupied with fleeing. Fleeing from what exactly? He wasn’t entirely sure, but his whole being screamed at him to get away. To get away from that wretched mirror. 

His back hit the bed and he scrambled to stand up. Klarion’s breath hitched as he did so and his sobs became more intense. He quickly picked up the sweater he had discarded earlier, pulling it over his head chaotically and roughly. He pushed the sleeves on his eyes, trying to get the fabric to absorb the tears. He took a few spastic breaths and made his way to the door. It slid open and he practically jumped out.

Klarion didn’t know where he was going exactly, the cave only had so many rooms. He knew that the Team was around, but he didn’t care at this point. He was far too caught up in his anxiety to care about what they had to say to him on this particular day. It felt as though the inhibitor collar was tightening around his neck, as though it was choking him. 

As he reached the end of the hallway, Klarion didn’t even stop to check if anyone was walking by. Instead he kept moving, going straight into the large hall. If there was anyone there, he didn’t notice, his vision had taken up a sort of tunnel vision in his panic and his ears were still ringing. He walked and walked and walked, not knowing where he was going, but continuing none the less.

Klarion ignored everything around him, it was almost like he was underwater. Not drowning though, just submerged and unable to hear or really see anything. There was still the underlying panic which rendered this moment unpleasant. It had made his whole captivity even more unpleasant than it already was.

Suddenly a sound broke through to him, as well as a smell. Klarion stopped walking and he tried to ground himself, determined to figure out what had broken through his barrier of anxiety. He focussed on the sound, trying to discern what exactly he was hearing. Then, he fixed on it. Humming. A soft melodic humming, that instantly ebbed away at the fog of panic that surrounded him. His breathing slowed, evening out. The last of the pent up tears falling with a sigh of relief. 

As he listened to the humming with determination, Klarion’s head was breaking out of the water. He became aware of his surroundings again, aware of sounds and his vision cleared. After a few moments of steeling himself, Klarion looked around. He had made his way to the kitchen in his panic. He looked back at the large hall, seeing Aqualad and Superboy training, with Miss Martian keeping score. Had he walked passed them and ignored them? Had they seen him? Had they said something?

As these questions raced through his head he turned towards the source of the humming. There stood Zatanna, swaying as she hummed by the stove. She didn’t seem aware of his presence, her ears being blocked by some strange white things in her ears. She was cooking something, Klarion couldn’t discern what exactly. All he knew was that the smell was heavenly, unlike anything he had ever smelt before. 

Zatanna then turned towards Klarion and finally noticed him. She smiled and scrambled to pull the strange white things out of her ears. Her expression surprised him. It looked as though she was... sort of happy to see him. Not repulsed or suspicious like her colleagues. Klarion noticed that her body language was open instead of hostile, it relaxed him even more. He gave her a tiny smile in return.

“Are you hungry?” Zatanna asked gesturing at the pot. “I’ve made enough to feed an army I think.” She giggled slightly. It was... cute. Klarion took a step closer trying to get a better look at the food. Truth be told he was quite hungry, since he had arrived at Mt. Justice he had not had a decent meal due to his inability to cook or use modern technology. Even though he didn’t know exactly what was in the pot, he wouldn’t mind taking a chance on it.

“What is it?” Klarion asked softly. Zatanna looked at the pot for a second before answering.

“It’s ratatouille.” She said enthusiastically. Klarion looked at her cluelessly. He had no idea what that was. Then again, he didn’t know many things when it came to food. Where he came from, they had very little variety when it came to food. His eyebrows knitted together in confusion and upon noticing it, Zatanna continued. “Oh it’s, courgette, tomatoes, onions and aubergine. Along with herbs and stuff. All put together and cooked in the oven. I’ve also made pasta to go with it.” 

Again, Klarion was at a loss, he had no idea what most of those things were. The only familiar ingredient was the onion. Nonetheless, he wanted to try it, knowing that Zatanna likely wouldn’t poison him. He could take that chance. 

“Alright.” Klarion said slightly hesitant. Zatanna smiles again, this time her whole face went with it.

“Okay great. Go sit over there and I’ll come with the food in a second. I just want to change real quick.” She said gesturing to the kitchen island. Klarion stepped towards it noticing the stools that stood by it. He sat at the first one he reached. Klarion turned back to Zatanna who had both hands upturned at her sides. “Cilohtac loohcs morfinu enogeb, ecalper ti htiw elbatrofmoc gnihtolc.” 

She chanted beautifully and without hesitation. Out of habit, Klarion translates the spell in his head: Catholic school uniform begone, replace it with comfortable clothing. He chuckled. He could tell that she had progressed since that fateful night on Roanoke Island. There was more confidence in her stance, more power in her voice. While this spell was for something as trivial as changing clothes, it was still very telling to another magic user. Klarion felt...pride, for some odd reason.

White mist rose from the floor and soon the black skirt, white dress shirt and blue cardigan she had been wearing were engulfed. They were replaced with black sweatpants, not unlike his own, and an oversized baby blue knit sweater. When the mist was gone, Zatanna stretched and cracked her knuckles, going on her tippy toes to do it. 

Soon after, Zatanna got two bowls out of the cupboard above her and two spoons from the drawer next to her. As she put some of the food in the bowl, Klarion fidgeted with his sharp fingernails. Before he knew it Zatanna was sad on a seat about a metre away, pushing a bowl of hot food towards him. Klarion turned in his chair slightly to face her more.

“Thank you.” He said as he picked up the fork. She smiled that bright smile again. 

“You’re welcome. I hope you like it.” She said picking up her own fork and taking a bite. Klarion felt nervous at first. He stared down at the array of vivid colours in his bowl, slightly intimidated by it. He sighed and put a small amount on his fork. He put it in his mouth and his whole world changed.

It was like an eruption of new tastes in his mouth. He didn’t know which vegetable was which, but he didn’t care, every part of this was amazing. It was slightly overwhelming, but he didn’t care. He quickly took another bite, savouring it and trying to taste everything. Suddenly, he had no idea how he had ever lived without it. Next to him, Zatanna giggled softly.

“I think that’s a yes to liking it then?” She said taking another bite from her bowl. Klarion nodded and quickly took another bite. “Slow down, slow down, you’ll make yourself sick otherwise.” Zatanna warned. Klarion did slow down, putting the fork down for a few moments, taking in what he was eating. He looked to Zatanna who was looking at him.

“Sorry. It’s just...” Klarion pauses, not sure what exactly to say. “... we didn’t really have a lot of variety when it came to food where I come from.” He sounded slightly embarrassed. He didn’t really want to think about that right now. Instead he thought about whether Teekl might like what he was eating, if she would eat it too. Zatanna was looking at him with a puzzled expression.

“They really don’t have vegetables where you come from? What kind of place doesn’t have vegetables?” She asked flabbergasted. Klarion didn’t answer, staying silent instead. Zatanna picked up on this and went to change the subject. “Have you eaten enough since you’ve been at the cave? You aren’t out of your room much.” 

There was a hint of concern in her voice. It was comforting to Klarion. He was always a thin person at it was, the lack of food intake since his captivity hadn’t really helped. 

“No. Probably not.” Klarion said, sounding a little bit tired. “I don’t know how to cook.” He admitted, defeat evident in his voice. Zatanna’s concern became evident on her face. Klarion looked down at his cuffed wrists. The despair from earlier was creeping back. For all of his power and might, there were still simple and mundane things he couldn’t do. He sighed, his body looking like it was deflating. 

“I could teach you a little bit.” Zatanna said softly. Klarion looked back at her, eyebrows rising in surprise. “I mean I don’t know all that much, but I can teach you the basics.” Klarion stares at her for a moment, not quite comprehending what was happening. He blinked before nodding slowly. She smiled again, something Klarion was quickly growing fond of. Zatanna went back to her food and continued to eat, all while trying to maintain eye contact with him. 

Klarion kept eating as well, taking small bites as he went. He eventually had to stop, becoming full with a little more than half of the food still in the bowl. With the lack of food intake in the past two months of captivity, he got full very quickly. Instead he just observed Zatanna as she ate, just being in her presence calmed him. 

Still, there was something that was bothering him about these exchanges. Zatanna’s lack of hostility felt strange to him, seeing as she had the most reason to be hostile towards him. 

“Why don’t you hate me?” Klarion asked, barely above a whisper. Zatanna dropped her fork in her bowl with a loud clinking noise, her head snapping towards him. Her eyes were wide and her eyebrows were raised high. She looked surprised and confused.

“I’m sorry?” She asked in a puzzled tone. Klarion contemplated dropping the subject for a second, but his curiosity won.

“I mean... uhm... out of everyone here... you have the most reason to hate me...” Klarion’s hands fingers fidgeted with the gold bands on his wrist. Zatanna still looked confused so he continued. 

“With what happened... on Roanoke...with Nabu and your... your father...” His voice was hesitant. Zatanna’s face fell at the mention of Zatara and Klarion quickly regretted broaching the subject with her. Yet he continued, there was no turning back now. 

“I just... don’t understand why... why you aren’t... aren’t...” Klarion hesitated again, not able think of the right word.

“Hateful?” Zatanna filled in, her voice thick with sadness. Klarion looked at her again, meeting her intense gaze. He nodded. Yes, hateful. Zatanna sighed and ran a hand through her long black hair. 

“I’m not sure how I feel. And in all honesty... that night... with my dad and Fate... it was more my fault than anything else.” Her voice was even, but her expressions betrayed her sadness. Klarion wanted to object, but his voice was caught in his throat. 

“We were probably never going to beat you without Fate. Putting on the helmet was my decision, it was my call and I lost control of the situation when Fate wouldn’t let me go.” Zatanna’s eyes were tearing up, Klarion could see. 

“Whatever your reasons were for doing what you did that night... in the end dad paid the ultimate price for a mistake I made and I don’t know if I have it in me to blame you for my own naïveté. I miss dad so much, but... doesn’t seem fair.” Her voice was barely above a whisper when she spoke the last sentence. Even with Zatanna’s reasoning, Klarion still felt immeasurable guilt. 

“Besides, the rest of the team is already far too aggressive and hostile towards you as it is, I don’t see the point in adding to that. I’d rather get to know you and... understand you better.” Zatanna spoke with a hint of optimism. Klarion didn’t know how to react to her words. Never in his life had anyone been so kind to him without an ulterior motive or something sinister behind it. He didn’t know if he had ever felt this type of kindness in his life, even when he was a child growing up in that dark place.

He felt tears well up in his eyes. For once not from panic or unmeasured despair, but from happiness. They didn’t fall however, Klarion managed to keep them in. He took a deep and shaky breath before meeting Zatanna’s gaze once again.

“Thank you.” Klarion whispered. 

Zatanna smiles a small smile and her eyes softened even more than before somehow. 

They sat there for a little while longer, Zatanna carefully telling Klarion a few things about her father. It was made clear to him from her demeanour that she wasn’t entirely ready to talk at length about Zatara to another person, so he didn’t press her. They made an agreement that they would start talking more, about whatever they felt like, and that when Klarion felt more inclined to open up about something that Zatanna would be there to listen.

It was a sweet gesture, but Klarion doubted he would ever feel comfortable telling anyone about anything related to his past or the Light. Nonetheless, he enjoyed speaking with Zatanna. She was a comforting presence and easy to talk to. She somehow calmed Klarion’s overwhelmed nerves and silenced the dark thoughts that swirled in his mind. There was a small upside to his captivity after all

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed! I promise I’ll try to update a bit faster!   
> Feedback is always welcome :)


	8. VIII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a bit short and very dialogue heavy, but it’s important for the progression of the story!  
> I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> Tw: brief description of injuries

While Zatanna and Klarion had been having dinner, the Justice League had convened on the Watchtower. Their point of discussion, the recently defeated Lord of Chaos. Every Leaguer was present, from Batman and Superman to Red Tornado. All the Leaguers were chatting to each other, not yet sitting at the large U shaped table. There was a palpable tension in the air, no Leaguer really wanting to start discussing the problem that was Klarion.

The sounds of casual conversation dissipated when Batman made his way to the head of the table, Wonder Woman and Superman on either side of him. All the Leaguers turned their attention to the so called ‘Big Three’, silence filling the the grand room.

“Welcome everyone, please be seated.” Batman said in his usual gruff tone. Every Leaguer walked to their seats, shuffling around before they sat still in their chairs. Once everyone was seated, Wonder Woman and Superman followed suit, along with Batman not a few seconds later. There was a silence as everyone looked to Batman to begin speaking. “I understand that the... topic of today’s meeting isn’t ideal, but a few things have been brought to our attention and need to be addressed.”

There were a few quiet murmurs around the table. Several different expressions graced the faces of the different leaguers, their discomfort or contempt for the subject apparent. 

“If we are all ready, I would like to start going down the list.” Batman continued. The Leaguers gave small nods and Batman pulled up Klarion’s file on the holographic computer. The file showed some of Klarion’s information, but much of it was blank.

Name: Klarion;  
Surname: Unknown;  
Age: Unknown;  
Height: 6ft 1in (186cm);  
Weight: 120lbs (55kg):  
Race: Unknown;  
Strength: Unknown;  
Power: Unknown. 

His picture was... not ideal to say the least. It seemed to have been taken in the immediate aftermath of the battle, after Klarion had been treated. He was wearing a hospital gown, the dark bruising stood out strongly on his almost translucent skin, his eyes were sunken and dark, making him look exhausted. Worst of all the inhibitor collar was front and centre, looking as though it weighed him down. When the Leaguers actually looked at the picture, several of them grimaced. 

“Firstly, I can confirm that so far, he hasn’t given up any information about the Light. From what I understand he barely talks to anyone at all. I think we all know that for this to work this has to change.” Batman said. The Leaguers looked around themselves and Black Canary cleared her throat.

“I already suggested to him that he should interact more with the rest of the team and that he‘ll be expected to be a part of it eventually.” She spoke in a measured tone, calm. “When I spoke to him, he wasn’t very talkative. The only topic that garnered more than a yes or no was the cat. He didn’t say much otherwise, even when I pressed him about the Light.” The League pondered on what Canary had said. They murmured amongst themselves, expressing their opinions to each other.

“We’ll get back to that later. Red Tornado had some concerns he wanted to express to us about Klarion, so I will give him the floor.” Batman said, gesturing towards the red robot. Every Leaguer turned their heads towards Red Tornado.

“Thank you. Members of the team have expressed concern for Klarion’s health. This is security footage from a week ago.” Tornado pulled up a video feed showing Klarion walking aimlessly around the cave. Tornado zoomed in and paused right when Klarion’s left arm came into view. He was wearing a white short sleeved t shirt in the footage, putting his viscous bruises on display. “There is concern that if these bruises have not yet healed, that the more... severe injuries probably are not healed either.” 

“How do we know he isn’t faking this, I mean he is magical.” Plastic Man asked, leaning forward in his chair and gesturing to the footage.

“His magic is completely blocked.” Dr. Fate said crossing his arms dismissively. “Which makes it impossible for him to do anything magic related.” 

Everyone turned their attention back to the paused footage, really taking in the injuries on Klarion’s body. 

“So then we must assume that he is not healing at the rate we thought he would.” Wonder Woman stated. 

“Dr. Callaghan did warn us that he wouldn’t be in great shape for a while after he treated him.” Superman responded.

“Even so, Klarion himself does not speak to anyone, how can we possibly know what goes on with him?” Hawkwoman asked.

“Okay hold on, who exactly on the team brought up these concerns?” Captain Atom asked looking back at Red Tornado. Tornado turned to Batman on his right for a moment. They nodded silently at each other and then Tornado turned back to the group.

“Zatanna and Aqualad expressed these concerns to me some days ago.” Several Leaguers nodded at his words. Some knitted their eyebrows in confusion. Zatanna expressing concern for the one who essentially made her lose her father was odd to say the least. “They came to me together, saying that they were worried about his health and that he is isolating himself.”

“It sounds like he’s just trying to avoid having to face the team.” Green Arrow said.

“Maybe, but we don’t really know what his mental state is like.” Flash responded.

“Whatever his reasons, it is likely a good idea for Dr. Callaghan to check him again.” Wonder Woman interjected. Several Leaguers nodded.

“Then we can agree to send Dr. Callaghan to check Klarion in a few days time?” Batman asked sternly, silencing the rest. Most nodded in response, others affirmed with a simple yes. “Alright. Myself and Red Tornado will organise that after. Circling back to what Black Canary was saying. The cat.”

There were a few murmurs around the table, but no one spoke up just yet.

“In my opinion, it’s time to give it back to him.” Batman stated. The table erupted.

“What?! Why?!” Green Arrow.

“It’s the only leverage we have against him.” Green Lantern.

“The kid is psychotic, giving his pet back won’t help us.” Superman.

“What brought that on?” Hawkman.

“It is not the course of action I would think to take.” Aquaman.

“He won’t ever tell us anything if we give the cat back.” Plastic Man.

“Why not? It’s obvious he misses her.” Captain Marvel.

“Literally anything would be better than that.” Green Lantern.

“It could help us gain his trust.” Flash.

“I would sooner release Zatara then give that thing back to its owner.” Dr. Fate.

Batman simply narrowed his eyes and waited for the table to quiet down. He had expected this reaction and was prepared. After another minute of verbal explosion, the table silenced once again, their attention back to Batman.

“This is not the course of action I want to take either, but it’s necessary.” Batman stated. Several Leaguers went to interject, but Batman continued. “It’s clear that what we have done so far isn’t working. This can help us gain an edge over him. Besides with his magic blocked the cat is just that, a cat.”

“I see your point, but what guarantee do we have that he will reveal anything if we return the cat to him.” Martian Manhunter inquired. 

“We don’t, it’s a risk we have to take.” Batman responded. The League seemed to ponder on Batman’s words. 

“If we do this, we should start consistently talking to him, interrogate him subtly a lot more.” Black Canary suggested. 

“Perhaps have different Leaguers speak with him every time? He must take a liking to one of us at some point.” Atom responded. 

“I doubt he’ll really like any of us, I mean we did beat him on the battlefield. He can’t feel too good about that.” Flash pointed out.

“All valid suggestions. We will figure out the next steps right after we return the cat. If we can all agree to take that step.” Batman said in an insinuating tone. He could tell that most of the Leaguers were likely not on board with his plan, however he knew they would agree, since they were all out of ideas on how to make Klarion talk. This could likely be a break through. Nobody said anything, not opposing or agreeing, so Batman took that as a unanimous yes. “Then we can start making preparations to bring the cat to the cave in about a weeks time. Onto the last point, has anyone been able to find anything relating to where Klarion comes from exactly? Or anything really about his past?”

Captain Atom pulled up a file on the holographic screen.

“To be honest there is next to nothing about him in general. The furthest back I could find him in any records is about seven years ago.” Captain Aton didn’t sound optimistic, reflecting the mood of many of the Leaguers.

“We have to assume that he was around, just not known to us or the public.” Hawkwoman added. 

“I have a suggestion.” Dr. Fate interjected, his voice grave. Several gazes were on him, anxious for him to continue. “There is someone who could shed some light on the witch boy. Someone whom I know keeps track of most magical dealings on Earth. Etrigan the Demon, is known to keep a very detailed record of all magic users on Earth, perhaps he can be of assistance.”

Most of the League was familiar with the name. They had offered Etrigan a spot on the Justice League, but he had declined as soon as he was asked. He never gave a reason, only saying that the JLA was not for him. He was reclusive, only coming out of hiding in times of great need, making him quite hard to find.

“I only do not know where to find him.” Dr. Fate admitted, crossing his arms as he spoke. 

“I do. We can go to Etrigan together.” Batman stated. They nodded at each other. The rest of the League affirmed their agreement to this particular course of action.

“Good, hopefully something comes out of that.” Green Arrow said somewhat dismissively. 

“We will go forth with these plans in the next few days. For now, let’s move on to other subjects that need to be addressed.” Superman said, standing up and moving towards a larger screen to the left of the U shaped table. Batman followed.

They began explain several situations that were going on in relation to one of Bane’s operations in South America. The League listened attentively, in an unspoken and unanimous way closing the part of the discussion relating to Klarion. His file and picture lingered over the U shaped table for some time, only Flash and Captain Marvel occasionally looking back at it with concern etched on their faces.

While the League stood for Justice and all that was good, it was not difficult for some Leaguers themselves to recognise when a topic of conversation made the whole table uncomfortable. So uncomfortable that they wanted to get through that part of the meeting as fast as humanely possible. It was not nearly the end of this situation however, not even close. 

Far more sinister things were at play, the Justice League was simple not aware of it just yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that was good :) if the league seem a bit dismissive and somewhat like assholes at times, that’s the point please don’t hate me :)
> 
> Feedback always welcome! Thanks for reading


	9. IX

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was also mad long so I cut it in half again :) the next chapter won’t be too long I promise.
> 
> Tw: medical examination, description of injuries, depression, anxiety, ptsd, self hatred

Klarion had been lucid dreaming, at least he thought he was. He hadn’t even realised he had fallen asleep, the last thing he was aware of being himself staring at the door from his bed. His dreaming had been quite whimsical at the start, light and airy, not at all aggressive. He had been walking under the clear night sky, the stars shining and bright. Klarion hadn’t seen the sky in months, making this comforting and pleasant.

Teekl was there too, walking by his side and reflecting his emotions of awe as they looked up at the sky. They walked for what felt like forever, but the comfort never wavered. A warm feeling hugged Klarion, something he rarely felt. Still as he continued to walk, staring up at the sky, a feeling of dread started to creep up. Klarion didn’t know why this dread was building, but he tried his best to ignore it.

That would prove very hard, as the dream shifted to something darker and far more sinister. Klarion wanted to stop walking, but something compelled him to continue, forcing him to continue. Fear gripped his heart as he moved forward, the dread in his stomach intensifying to a painful point. Teekl had disappeared from his view and the bright stars were dimming, making his surroundings darker and darker.

Then, in the distance, he saw fire, smelt it and began to feel it on his skin. He saw the smoke rising high and black, perverting every part of his view. The fear that had gripped his heart became terror and the dread became horror. Klarion was forced closer, the fire growing more violent as he approached. He tried to move, tried to get away, but it was futile, something was holding him captive. The heat was growing stronger, touching Klarion and spreading over his vulnerable body. 

A chanting began to sound. It was low at first, but it became louder and louder.

“Cr...n ab...s.”

Klarion desperately looked around himself, trying to discern where it was coming from. It only got louder, filling his ears with hatefully chanting.

“Not again please.” He whispered, tears forming behind his eyes. “No!”

“...abides.”

The fire spread over the ground, circling Klarion excruciatingly slowly, mocking him. He felt the rope tightening around him again, holding him in place, unable to escape the flames. 

“Croatoan abides!” 

Klarion tried to look up at the sky, the tears falling down his cheeks and his neck, but there was no sky to see, there was only fire. He screamed.

“CROATOAN ABIDES!” 

He thrashed and kicked and cried out. The heat was searing, tearing into his being. All he could see was tall shadows and blinding light. Klarion couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t hear anything besides the roaring of the flames and the cursed chanting.

“CROATOAN ABIDES!”

The noise became deafening, the fire blinding. It engulfed him completely and everything went dark. 

~~~~

Klarion shot up in his bed, inhaling sharply mid cry. His breathing was laboured as he rocked back and forth. His cheeks were wet and his whole body was tense with anxiety. He patted his upper body in panic, checking for what he had dreamed. But there was nothing.

No fire. No smoke. No chanting.

It was just a dream. A horrible, vile and terrifying dream. A dream that felt far too close to... memory. Klarion pushed the heals of his hands into his eyes, something he was doing far too often these days. He then wiped the tears off his face and inhaled deeply, falling back onto his pillow with a soft thud. 

Klarion’s body hurt, the extreme tension aggravating his injuries. His chest rose and fell with some difficulty as he regulated his breathing. 

He was beginning to worry. Something that Klarion had buried deep within himself was resurfacing. Mentally and... physically. A pervasive chill went up his spine at the thought. He really didn’t want to think about this. Klarion continued to breathe and simply exist, making his mind as blank as possible. He felt himself drifting off back into oblivion and blissful ignorance. Then just as his eyes were about to close there was a knock at his door. 

Klarion flinched back into awareness. He inhaled sharply and sat up once more. He sighed. This couldn’t be good. The only times anyone came knocking on his door was when the Team or the League wanted to not so subtlety interrogate him. Even Zatanna never knocked, she always waited for him to come out in his own time and then she would approach him. A part of him did hope that it was Zatanna behind the door, but he already knew it wouldn’t be. 

Klarion shook himself a bit and looked around for a sweater to wear. He bent over to pick it up, sharp pains assaulting him as he went, forcing a few grunts out of Klarion. When he stood up straight again he stopped and took several deep breaths, willing the sharp pain to go away. It didn’t, of course, the pain was always there no matter what he did or didn’t do. 

The knock came again as Klarion finished putting on his shoes. He steeled his nerves as best he could, preparing himself for yet another not so subtle interrogation from the heroes. Because that’s what it had to be... right? He took a deep breath before pressing the panel button to his right. The door slid open and the light poured into the room.

There stood Aqualad, in full costume. He had an unreadable expression on his face, but it wasn’t hostile, just passive. There was a full minute of awkward silence, Klarion having no idea what to say to the young Atlantian. 

“If you would please come with me.” Aqualad said simply. He looked at Klarion expectantly, gesturing for him to follow. Klarion nodded and cautiously stepped out of the room. He watched Aqualad closely, trying to figure out what this was about, but he betrayed nothing. 

So they walked down the residents hallway, Aqualad ahead and Klarion a step or two behind.

“May I ask... what this is about?” Klarion asked hesitantly. Aqualad’s head turned towards him slightly, their eyes met for a split second before Klarion averted his gaze. Aqualad offered him a small sympathetic smile and walked ever so slightly slower to match Klarion’s pace.

“Zatanna and I were beginning to worry about your health, so we brought our concerns to Red Tornado, who then brought them to the League.” Aqualad explained. Klarion was beyond confused. Worried about his health? Klarion hadn’t even been aware that Aqualad had considered him as anything other than a threat. And Zatanna... had voiced her concerns to Aqualad? Klarion didn’t know what to make of this information, but he felt slightly comforted that Zatanna wasn’t the only team member who didn’t outright hate him. The tiniest warmth filled his chest. As they rounded the corner towards the large hall, Aqualad spoke again. “The League has decided that you should be checked by a medical professional, just to be sure that you are in good health.”

Oh. As Klarion registered Aqualad’s words, that tiny warmth he experienced went away very fast and before he knew it, he was standing in front of the whole team, seven Leaguers and an unknown man. The medical professional likely. He stopped in his tracks, not daring to go closer. Aqualad took a few more steps before stopping in front of Batman. Klarion felt everyone’s gazes on him, their stares penetrating his very being. It made him feel ill at ease, his body tensed up and his left arm began to shake, a tell of his anxiety he had recently developed. 

Batman, Dr. Fate, Superman, Red Tornado, Black Canary, Flash and Captain Marvel. They all sort of stood around with the team, staring at him with unrelenting gazes. With sixteen pairs of eyes on him, Klarion didn’t know where to look. He felt unbearably out of place, all the heroes were in full battle garb, ready to fight at any moment if need be and he had literally just rolled out of bed. Klarion fixed his eyes on the ground, not wanting to draw more attention to himself, even though he was fully aware that he was the subject of everyone’s scrutiny. 

Klarion had to stop himself from flinching when Batman approached, that sense of dread from earlier creeping back in his spine. The unknown man followed close behind the caped crusader, looking Klarion up and down as he went. 

“Follow me.” Batman ordered and walked passed the witch boy. The unknown man began to walk and Klarion hurried to follow. He kept a small distance between himself and the two men in front of him, not daring to get too close. They walked towards a room that Klarion knew to be the infirmary, which made sense to him when he remembered what Aqualad had said. The League wanted to check him, check if he was healthy. How disappointed they would be, or satisfied, he didn’t know what they were thinking. 

After a few minutes they reached a door, positioned next to several windows that looked into the infirmary. Batman stopped right before the door, turning towards Klarion, his eyes narrowed, his face as stony as ever. The tension in Klarion’s shoulders and back became borderline painful. The unknown man stepped up beside Batman and opened the door, followed by him gesturing for Klarion to go in. 

Klarion hesitated, but after one threatening look from Batman, he made his way into the pristine infirmary. He walked to the middle of the room before turning back to the door. The unknown man, the medical professional, stood in the door way, seemingly blocking Batman’s path. 

“I must insist that I conduct this check with no distractions. If you wouldn’t mind leaving us please.” He said sternly, an air of authority in his voice. Klarion looked to Batman, who didn’t seem impressed with the medical professional’s request. No doubt Batman and the League wanted to keep a close eye on him when he was vulnerable. “I will give you a full report after, but for privacy reasons I kindly ask you to leave us.”

Privacy reasons? For him? Klarion was confused as ever. The Justice League and the Team watched his every move, this wouldn’t be any different. In fact he was sure that they would insist on sitting in, just to make sure he didn’t do anything. But to Klarion’s shock, Batman nodded at the man and proceeded to have the door closed in his face. The man then went to each of the windows and closed the blinds, allowing for no one to look in or out. Who was this man? And why was he so insistent to see him alone? Klarion felt a little uneasy at those thoughts, not quite sure what to make of this man. 

The man eventually turned around and faced Klarion. He had an open disposition about him, unthreatening and almost kind.

“My name is Dr. David Callaghan, I will be checking your injuries today. If you recall, we have met before.” Met before? Klarion was instantly confused. He didn’t recognise this man, didn’t know him. The doctor seemed to pick up on his confusion and continued. “I treated you in the immediate aftermath of that battle. You were in pretty bad shape, not very coherent really.” 

Klarion still didn’t recognise him, but that didn’t matter to him. This man, Dr. Callaghan had seen his many injuries. 

“Oh... I uhm... don’t remember... much of that.” Klarion said hesitantly. 

“I wouldn’t expect you to, we put you on so many sedatives it wasn’t possible for you to be very lucid.” The doctor walked passed him towards a patients table or chair or whatever it was. “If you could sit here and take off your tops, then we can make a start.” Klarion’s left arm was positively vibrating. He didn’t know if he could handle someone other than himself seeing the mess that was his upper body. He already hated looking at himself, he couldn’t imagine what others would think if they saw it. Even though Dr. Callaghan had already seen them, Klarion couldn’t fathom why he would want to see them again.

Klarion moved very slowly towards the table, cautiously sitting once he got there. His breathing sped up at the prospect of having to undress. He really, really didn’t want to. He felt the familiar feeling of tears forming behind his eyes, the anxiety constricting his chest. The doctor was watching him, analysing him almost. Klarion realised there was no escape from this, so he started taking off his sweater and his shirt in the way he knew didn’t aggravate his injuries as much. It took a few moments but eventually he felt the cold air of the room invade his exposed body and the two tops were discarded on the floor. Klarion felt himself hunch over slightly, trying to shield his thin body from view. 

He suddenly heard Dr. Callaghan gasp in front of him. Klarion’s head snapped up and he got a good look at the doctor’s face. He seemed... shocked, horrified even. The doctor inclined his head slightly, trying to get a better look at Klarion’s upper body. Klarion felt as though he were about to hyperventilate, he felt so exposed and disgusted with himself.

“Christ in all heaven have they not been taking care of you?” The shock was evident in Dr. Callaghan’s tone. Clearly he had not been expecting what he saw. Klarion was confused at this. It hadn’t surprised him when the League had left him to his own devices, still severely injured and surrounded by those who hated him. Klarion’s lack of reaction seemed to fuel the doctor more. “I’m sorry for the way I am reacting, but these injuries should be healed by now. Your ribs look like they are still broken...” 

Dr. Callaghan circled around Klarion, wanting to look at his equally damaged back. The doctor sighed and after a few moments went back to face Klarion. 

“Okay before I do anything, I want to ask you a few questions. First, how often do these injuries pain you? On a day to day basis?” The doctor pulled out a note book and a pen. Klarion didn’t hesitate to answer.

“All the time.” He said softly. Dr. Callahan wrote something down quickly. 

“Sharp or dull pain?” He asked, his eyes looking up for a few seconds. 

“Sharp.” Klarion responded. His breathing was beginning to slow down, but he felt no less anxious.

“Your ribs, do they hurt when you breathe?” He gestured to the angry red marks on Klarion’s torso. Klarion took a shallow breath.

“Yes.” He said slightly laboured. The doctor nodded, writing quickly in the notebook. 

“Which injury hurts the most?” Dr. Callaghan stopped writing and looked expectantly at Klarion. Klarion had to stop and think for a few seconds. All the injuries hurt the most, constantly. He could never escape it.

“All of them.” He said sadly. Dr. Callaghan contemplated these answers for a few seconds before standing up and standing in front of the witch boy once again. He regarded Klarion sadly, pity radiating off of him in waves. It made Klarion feel even weaker than he already was. 

“I’m going to do a few routine checks to see how these have progressed since I last treated you. I’m going to have to touch you, if that’s alright with you.” It was more of a statement than a question. In truth, no it was not alright, the last thing Klarion wanted was to be touched, but he knew that he didn’t have much of a choice in the matter. He nodded hesitantly and the doctor moving back around him. 

Klarion suddenly felt a cold hand on his injured shoulder blade. He flinched and sat up straight, the movement aggravating his ribs. The doctor placed his hand on Klarion’s back, attempting to stabilise him. 

“It’s alright Klarion, it’s alright. Try not to make sudden moves, I don’t want you hurting yourself.”  
Klarion twisted a little bit to look at the doctor’s face. His eyes were wide and he couldn’t for the life of him understand this man’s intentions. He was shaking from cold or fear, he wasn’t sure and he didn’t particularly care. Klarion was confused. He took a few shaky breaths as Dr. Callaghan started applying pressure on his shoulder blade.

At first the pressure didn’t hurt much, just the usual pain he felt constantly. But as the hand moved around the pain flared and tears were gathering in Klarion’s eyes. Dr. Callaghan continued to check his left arm, stopping occasionally to take notes, allowing Klarion to gather himself and stop himself from crying from pain. His injured arm was violently shaking at this point, paining him even further. Klarion closed his eyes tightly and tried to breathe through the searing pain. As the doctor made his way back around a few stray tears fell. Dr. Callaghan put his hand on Klarion’s uninjured shoulder.

“Klarion listen to me, I need to check your rib cage and where you bled internally.” Klarion’s breath hitched at his words, a wave of cold travelling down his spine and down to his legs. The doctor sighed sadly. “Okay, I need you to lift your arm and keep it to your chest like this.” Dr. Callaghan proceeded to pull his stretched arm to his chest and hold it with his other arm. Klarion placed his right arm to his shaking left elbow, and very slowly pushed it up. The pain became excruciating, his arm refusing to go any higher than the height one would have to shake hands with someone.

“I don’t t-think i-it can go any higher...” Klarion whispered, looking up at the doctor in front of his with panicked eyes. Dr Callaghan nodded and moved to check his rib cage and where he had... bled internally. 

As Dr. Callaghan did his work, Klarion zoned out. He fixed his gaze at a point on the plain white wall and just stared at it. He tried to keep his mind blank, afraid of what his mind might dig up to torment him with if he wasn’t careful. Teekl came to mind at a certain point, providing him with a small sense of security for a few moments. Eventually he felt somewhat at ease, a small amount of trust building towards this doctor. So far he had not done anything suspicious. Other than Zatanna, this doctor was the only other person who didn’t treat him like a threat. 

After a while Dr. Callaghan came back in to Klarion’s field of vision, using his finger tips to lift his chin up. The doctor looked concentrated, focused. For a split second Klarion couldn’t figure out why the doctor was looking at his neck, but then he remembered. The inhibitor collar. 

“Does this... collar ever come off?” Dr. Callaghan asked, irritation lacing his voice. Klarion shook his head. The doctor sighed, annoyed. “I think I know why your injuries are healing so slowly. Being blocked off from your natural magical abilities has also blocked off your natural healing process. It’s making you heal slower than the average human being.” Klarion’s eyes widened. Slower than the average human being? That... didn’t sit right with him. He hailed from Limbo Town, a place where all its inhabitants were magically gifted. He was a Lord of Chaos for heaven’s sake. He had power that was never meant to be contained. Klarion’s whole body vibrated. “And unless the men in tights decide to take it off, I’m afraid there isn’t much I can do to speed it up. Anything I would do would be practically useless.”

“So you’re saying... I just have to... deal with this... pain until it decides to go away?” Klarion’s voice was angry, but it shook, his fear and anxiety bleeding through. He didn’t want to be in pain anymore. He wanted to be numb. He wanted this ungodly collar and those cursed cuffs off. He wanted Teekl. He just wanted to be free again. 

“I suggest that in the mean time, you try to eat well and sleep as much as you can. You are sleep deprived and you are malnourished. If that gets better, it could possibly speed up the healing process.” Klarion took in his words, taking several deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Dr. Callaghan picked up his clothes for him and handed them to him. “I’ll be asking to come back and check on you in a few weeks time. I’m not overly fond of the way they are looking after you. It’s unacceptable really.”

Klarion sniffled and started putting on his tops again. This man kept surprising him. Soon after Klarion was dressed and his injuries hidden from the world, he and Dr. Callaghan made their way out of the infirmary. Everyone’s head snapped towards the pair, the stares instantly locking on the young warlock. The seven Leaguers made their way to them, their strides purposeful. Klarion shrunk back, trying to make himself as small as possible. 

Dr. Callaghan began conversing with the Leaguers, his tone harsh and accusing. Klarion didn’t register any of the words spoken though, his attention drawn to Zatanna making her way towards him. She offered him a smile, causing a warmth to flourish in his chest. It comforted him. Just before she reached him, the conversation between the doctor and the leaguers got aggressive and loud. 

“You don’t understand! He’s done absolutely terrible-“ Superman was cut off.

“I don’t much care if I’m honest. The way you supposed heroes are looking after what is essentially a severely injured adolescent is frankly appalling!” There was complete silence. Klarion looked on in shock, as did many others. The atmosphere became angry and it was directed at him. “I’d like to come back in a few weeks time to check his progress and to make sure that he is actually healthy, because right now he really isn’t, and you people let this happen.”

They continued back and forth, speaking as though Klarion wasn’t in the room. He didn’t mind all that much, their attention wasn’t on him directly. The Team though, were staring daggers. If looks could kill he would have been dead a hundred times over. He felt the familiar uncomfortableness creep back in, his back tensing up. 

Then, there was a soft touch on his right arm. Zatanna. She was very close, standing right beside him. Her warmth radiated off her, a certain calmness as well. Klarion felt himself relax slightly, being in close proximity to Zatanna usually had that effect on him. She leaned her head in closer and whispered so softly that only he could hear.

“I overheard them talking while you were gone.” She whispered, gesturing towards the seven Leaguers in front of them. Her next words made Klarion almost cry with relief.

“They’re bringing Teekl in a few days and giving her back.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked! Thanks for reading :)  
> Feedback always welcome :)


	10. X

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That took a bit longer than expected but eh that’s not new :)   
> I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Today was the day. Today was the day that Zatanna knew Klarion had prayed for since he arrived here and what the team had dreaded. Teekl was being given back, seemingly permanently, unless Klarion did something that angered anyone. Zatanna couldn’t figure out what the League’s play was here. Teekl was essentially their only bargaining chip with Klarion and now they gave her back? It was suspicious and didn’t make much sense. 

It had been five days since Klarion had been checked by Dr. Callaghan and since the League informed the Team that Teekl would be arriving in a few days time. To say that the Team disagreed with this decision was a gross understatement. They outright opposed the decision and when the League wouldn’t budge, they turned their anger towards Klarion.

With the League present, they didn’t launch a full frontal verbal assault, something Zatanna knew they were capable of. Instead they resolved to just stare at him with intimidating and hostile looks, getting their desired results as well. 

Zatanna had been standing close to Klarion, quietly asking him about the check with the doctor. He had been somewhat at ease, the tension he usually carried ebbed away slightly. It had quickly returned though, as Klarion had looked over her shoulder at one point and he had seen the Team staring daggers at him. If looks could kill, he would have died ten times over. 

Now, on the day that Teekl was meant to reunite with her master, it felt like deja vu. Everyone was in the hall, the grand door that led outside was wide open. The Team stood in the middle of the room, talking amongst themselves and making their apprehension for Klarion and this situation all too clear once again. Zatanna had stood slightly apart, her back to the large door and waiting for the witch boy to make his appearance. When he had walked out, the Team stared again, made comments and were not at all subtle about their feelings of hatred towards him. 

And so, the Team stood on one end, Zatanna and Klarion on another. The aggressive looks made Klarion visibly uncomfortable, something that wasn’t at all new. Beyond the droning of the cave, it was mostly silent. 

Klariok stared out of the door towards the outside world. A small part of Zatanna reminded her that he hadn’t been outside in two months. His expression looked full of longing and... hope. She didn’t think that Klarion was capable of that expression, especially given the situation he was in. The prospect of seeing Teekl soon, seemed to bring him out of his own head, pull him out of that melancholy he had been trapped by these last few weeks. 

Zatanna watched Klarion closely, studying his every expression, his every move. He was certainly more relaxed around her, a far cry from his tendency to flinch every time someone came near him. His eyes would light up slightly when they spoke and his face would lift too. His responses weren’t monosyllabic anymore either, he spoke in complete sentences with her most of the time. Zatanna found him compelling and considered him a friend at this point.

Klarion started fidgeting with his hands and looking down at the ground. His hands shook slightly as he shifted his weight between one foot to the other. Zatanna slowly put her hand on his uninjured bicep, being careful not to scare him. He still flinched, though not as violently as before. He looked up and looked at her. She offered him a small smile.

“It’ll be fine.” Zatanna whispered, lightly squeezing his arm. Klarion shakily sighed and nodded quickly. He became slightly more relaxed, but she could tell his anxiousness was still very much present. “I’m sure they’ll be here soon.” 

And as if the universe had heard her, the sound of a jet filled the space and the wind came rolling in. Klarion flinched more violently at the sound, but there was something that told Zatanna that he was relieved. He stared out again, his eyes fixed on the jet that had yet to open. 

Zatanna looked back at the Team. They looked like they were ready for an attack. Aqualad, Robin and Kid Flash had already started walking up to the hanger door, their demeanour slightly angry and annoyed. Annoyed at the fact that Klarion was getting his cat back it would seem. Most of the Team had been strongly against it, but in the end they didn’t argue with a direct order from Batman and the rest of the Justice League. And so the Team were mostly in a sour mood.

The jet doors opened with a hiss and out stepped four members of the Justice League. Zatanna couldn’t wrap her head around why they always travelled in such big packs when they came to visit the cave. Klarion’s magic was blocked off completely, he wasn’t a threat right now. It seemed like over kill if she was honest with herself. A show of power wasn’t necessary every time the heroes came to the cave in her mind. All it did was force Klarion further into himself and more afraid to interact with anyone. 

Klarion’s breathing had sped up since the doors had opened. He was scared and looked as though he wanted to run away. Zatanna didn’t blame him. This pattern, this deja vu the League was causing couldn’t be good for his mental health. She turned to him and squeezed his bicep again.

“It’s okay, come on.” She whispered, trying to keep her voice as calm as possible. Klarion looked at her once again. It was striking to her how deeply sad and afraid he looked. Zatanna hated that it was her Teammates, her mentors that was making someone in such a low place feel this way. It didn’t sit right with her at all. It made her question so many things, especially about herself. She used her head to gesture towards the hangar door, smiling as she did. 

Zatanna let go of his arm and they started making their way towards the hangar door. Ahead of them Zatanna could see the four Leaguers: Batman, Flash, Dr. Fate and Captain Marvel. In Flash’s arms was a little orange bundle, an unmoving little orange bundle. She heard Klarion take in a shaky breath.

“I-I can’t feel her.” He whispered sadly. Zatanna felt a cold pang in her chest. She wanted to grab his hand and comfort him, reassure him that Teekl was okay. But the logical part of her knew that her reassurance would mean little to nothing unless he saw that his beloved familiar was well with his own eyes. 

When they reached the Leaguers Zatanna stopped a step behind Klarion, giving him space. Not far from her was Aqualad, Robin and Kid Flash, and just behind them was the rest of the Team. The tension was high and it didn’t look like it was going to be resolved any time soon. Flash finally took a few steps forward at a nod from Batman and Teekl finally came into clear view.

She looked like she was sleeping. Her small ribs moving up and down in a steady rhythm, the sounds of her purring filling up the room. She looked like an ordinary sleepy house cat... even though she really wasn’t. It became slightly alarming when one realised that she was a witch boy’s familiar, she wasn’t meant to be so lethargic and unresponsive to everything. Most alarming of all was the bright gold collar around her neck, similar to the cuffs that Klarion was forced to wear. Magic blockers. 

Even from where she stood, Zatanna could still see Klarion’s face. He looked like he was on the verge of a panic attack, his jaw trembling and his eyes tearing up. 

Flash came closer, wordlessly encouraging Klarion to pick up his cat. Klarion’s hands rose impossibly slowly, hesitating to touch her as if he was afraid to hurt her. His injured arm shook horribly, it looked like someone else had grabbed it and was moving it around. After a moment he used his right arm to gently pick Teekl up from Flash’s arms, being so careful as he did it. Zatanna likened it to someone holding a newborn baby for the first time. 

Teekl didn’t immediately wake up, instead she slowly came out of her slumber, her crimson feline eyes blinking lethargically several times before finally focussing on her master. Klarion released a shaky sigh of relief and supported her small weight with his other arm. He held her protectively and scrutinised the collar. Zatanna could feel his trade mark anger build inside of him. His breathing as angry and his expression darkened.

“Why... is this on her?” Klarion asked in a low voice, his eyes not for a moment leaving the offending gold object. Flash took a step back as Batman and Dr. Fate took a step forward. 

“Is there a problem?” Batman asked, irritation lacing his voice. Fate gave off an air of condescension, Zatanna could tell. It was impossible to tell with the faceless helmet, but just the way he stood and what his body language gave off made it obvious. 

Klarion looked up from the gold collar, somehow staring both Batman and Fate in the eyes. Zatanna saw Batman falter for a split second. Klarion’s eyes were dark and raging.

“You have already put two blocks on me... putting one on her does nothing but... drain her energy... i-it’s unnecessary.” Klarion said slightly louder, his rage bleeding through. His grip on Teekl became tight and protective, his arms rigid with anger. Fate stepped closer, only a few feet away from his opposite.

“We cannot trust that this... thing is not capable of the same destruction as you.” Fate said rather dismissively.

“But she-“ Klarion started but was quickly interrupted. 

“It is necessary, whether you see it or not witch boy.” Fate insisted, leaning in closer. Klarion looked like he wanted to incinerate something, the tension in the room becoming unbearably tight.

“You know as well as I, she is a familiar, she exists to keep me grounded on the physical plane, that is all!” Klarion exclaimed, his voice a mix of desperation and anger. Fate laughed mockingly and Zatanna cringed inwardly. 

“You cannot possibly expect us to believe that this is all it does. We have seen it in battle boy.” Fate said folding his arms. Zatanna turned to the Team slightly. They looked hostile and ready to attack. 

“You’ve blocked off all of my abilities Nabu! She’s only capable of those things at MY command! She’s just a cat otherwise!” Klarion cried. “I know you abhor me to the point where you wish me dead, but this is just making us suffer!” Thats when the Team decided to step in and Zatanna never felt more uncomfortable in her life. Kid Flash, Artemis and Robin came up right to Klarion’s face, invading what little personal space he had. The rest of the team was only a step or two behind.

“Hey at least you have your cat back!” 

Klarion’s anger quickly dissipated.

“You’re not suffering, we gave you a place to stay instead of locking you up where you belong!” 

Replaced with fear instead. 

“After everything you’ve done, you’re crazy lucky to be standing here!”

He held Teekl even tighter,

“All you cause is destruction!”

For fear they might take her.

“You killed Kent! You don’t deserve any kindness from us!”

He took a few steps back, his throat bobbing up and down with anxiety.

“It could be so much worse!” 

His jaw trembled and his eyes shone in the light.

“That’s enough!” Batman yelled. He was agitated and didn’t care for this tirade to continue. The Team stopped their tangent and stared Klarion down. His eyes darted back and forth, not knowing where to look. Zatanna suspected he was on the verge of a panic attack and all she wanted was to push him out of the room, away from her Teammates. 

The staring eventually got the better of Klarion and he backed away, leaving the room with rushed steps. His whole body shook. Zatanna felt a protective rage light up in her, one she hadn’t known was there. She turned to her friends, not making her anger a secret. She was about to yell at them, scrutinise them and call them out on their hypocrisy. 

But Flash beat her to it.

“Are you kidding me?! Seriously?! I can’t believe we let the lot you be in charge of him!” Flash said angrily, his attention fully on the Team and more subtly towards Batman and Dr. Fate. “This behaviour is unacceptable to say the least. He his badly injured because of US and clearly not in a good headspace and your reaction is to be hostile and bully him?!” 

The Team was silent for a moment. Artemis and Kid Flash stepped up a moment later.

“You can’t expect us to be nice to him! It’s not our fault he’s the way he is.”

“Yeh tolerating his presence is hard enough.”

Flash did not seem to like those answers. In fact Zatanna could swear she saw the exposed part of his face go red.

“That is a poor excuse. The whole point of him being here is that he gives up information, that he begins to trust us. Have any of you thought about doing more than just tolerating his presence instead of crippling him emotionally?” He was met with silence. “I’ve never seen anyone switch from rage to pure fear so fast in my life. This has to change. You are part of the good guys, start acting like it.”

There was a heavy silence and a tensions so thick one could cut it with a sharp knife. Flash looked every member of the Team dead in the eyes, emphasising his point in an unspoken manner. He was right after all. While Zatanna had realised this weeks ago, the rest of the team was stuck in this cycle of hatred. 

Zatanna noticed Captain Marvel looking at the Team with an odd expression. He looked disappointed and far more serious than his usually chipper demeanour. It seemed that he agreed with Flash on this one. 

With a frustrated sigh Flash started making his way towards the Zeta tubes and Zatanna decided that this was her opportunity to leave. With every passing day she felt more and more disappointed with her Teammates, it made her sad.

She quickly walked towards the residents hall, hoping upon hope that Klarion hadn’t barricaded himself in his room. She wanted to make sure he was okay. She felt guilt flourish in her chest, a pit of anxiety forming in her stomach. Zatanna’s mind was racing, trying to figure out what to say and what to do. She drowned out the sound of the team calling after her as she walked away, not wanting to deal with their questioning or their attitudes. Now wasn’t the time to explain herself. Her instincts and magic guided her. She wasn’t aware of anything besides her magic bringing her closer and closer to the witch boy.

Zatanna regained awareness in the room of instruments, she topped at the doorway. She shook her head and organised her thoughts, looking around for Klarion. She spotted him and the sight that greeted her made her feel utterly sad.

Klarion was sat against a pillar, holding a slightly more awake Teekl to his chest and lightly scratching under her jaw with his sharp nails. He was crying as he did so, whispering inaudible things as he breathed unevenly. He held Teekl tightly, yet so gently, like the slightest of touches could break her. His eyes flicked up towards Zatanna for a moment before going back to his beloved familiar. She understood now, what he had meant when he said they were suffering. This was heartbreaking.

Zatanna slowly made her way to Klarion, lowering herself to sit close to him. He allowed it, seemingly taking comfort in it. She just watched the pair for a few minutes, trying to make her mouth work. It wasn’t until Klarion put Teekl in his lap with her head resting on his knee did she find her voice.

“I’m sorry... about them. That was just... awful.” She said softly, wrapping her arms around herself.

“It’s okay... it wasn’t you.” Klarion said sadly, bring his uninjured arm to wipe his tears away with the back of his hand. He sniffled and continued to pet Teekl. 

“No it really wasn’t. The Team went... way too far this time.” Zatanna said frustrated. “What they said was just... too much.”

“But they weren’t wrong...” Klarion said, his voice shaky. “I am all those things they said... and worse.” Zatanna didn’t know how to respond. Self hatred was a destructive thing and it was difficult to convince someone that they shouldn’t hate themselves. Zatanna sighed, she just wanted to tell him it wasn’t true, but she didn’t know how. 

There was a silence for a time, the only thing that could be heard was Teekl’s consistent purring. It relaxed both of the magic users, the silence becoming comfortable. They both simply watches Teekl as they sat together.

“If it’s any comfort... Flash and Captain Marvel were defending you after you left.” Zatanna said, her eyes meeting Klarion’s. His eyebrows were raised in confusion and his mouth open slightly in surprise. Zatanna smiled. “You have three people fighting in your corner now.”

“Three?” Klarion asked, his expression now perplexed. Zatanna nodded.

“Yes. Flash, Captain Marvel and... well, me.” She affirmed. Klarion sighed shakily and a lone tear fell down his pale cheek. He smiled sadly, looking down at Teekl for a moment before returning his gaze back to Zatanna.

“Thank you.” He whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay Teekl is back!  
> Hope you liked and feedback is always welcome :)


	11. XI

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m back again :)   
> The usual trigger warnings apply: references to depression and anxiety.
> 
> Hope you enjoy !

A couple days after the return of Teekl, Zatanna and Klarion found themselves in the instrument room again. Klarion was on the piano, playing a slow and calm piece, while Zatanna was reading a book of spells on the floor. To their knowledge the cave was mostly empty on this Friday afternoon, meaning that it was quiet. 

After the catastrophe that was brining Teekl to the cave, Klarion hadn’t come out of his room for two days. After his conversation with Zatanna, he had retreated to his room and didn’t come out. It had worried her immensely, her anxiety over the situation building as the hours went by. She knew he needed some space to be alone with his familiar, they had been apart for almost two and a half months after all. She imagined that they likely had never been apart for more than a second in their lives. 

They hadn’t really spoken yet since he left his room. She had walked in on him playing the piano and had decided to do some reading while he did. Teekl had been sleeping under the bench, undisturbed by anything around her. The way Klarion played today made her want to just lay down and fall asleep as well. She found herself humming to it occasionally as she read her book. It was so calming. 

When Klarion finished the song, he sat still for a few minutes in the echo of the last note. Zatanna watched his back, how it rose and fell with his deep breathing. It sounded slightly better than the usual wheezing he sometimes had from the broken ribs. She quickly averted her gaze back to her book as Klarion shifted on the bench. Her chest fluttered with embarrassment and her cheeks went slightly pink. She didn’t quite know why. 

As Klarion bent over with some difficulty, Zatanna’s focus was brought to his curled hair. It looked like black ink spreading over the clearest and translucent water. His curls were perfectly formed somehow, falling gracefully over themselves. If his hair had been longer, it would have looked exactly like hers. Zatanna let out a small sigh, looking back down at her book and smiling to herself.

Klarion clicked at Teekl with his fingers, waking her up. She blinked several times as she lifted her head to the origin point of the sound. Klarion stood up slowly, his eyes staying on Teekl under the bench. He wiggled his fingers at his familiar, likely a non-verbal gesture to tell her to follow him. And she did. Teekl stood up just as slowly as her master and followed him with uncertain steps.

Zatanna watched them closely as Klarion lowered himself to sit in front of her, just a meter away. He twisted slightly towards Teekl making her way towards them and winced, his injuries pulling Zatanna suspected. Once Teekl reached them, she climbed into Klarion’s lap and curled up. She started purring and her deep breathing resumed. Klarion scratched behind her ear with one long and sharp nail, looking down sadly at her as he did.

“Is she... okay?” Zatanna asked, leaning forward slightly. Klarion’s breath hitched and he sighed shakily. 

“She’s tired, the uhm... collar... blocks off her energy... much like it does with me.” Klarion’s jaw trembled. “Our telepathic connection is... severed... so I can’t hear her and she can’t hear me.” 

Klarion’s voice was filled with despair, it made the pit in Zatanna’s stomach grow. She frowned. He placed his hand on Teekl’s back and kept it there, just feeling her deep breaths as she slept. It looked like a profoundly personal moment, she felt like a voyeur, an outsider looking in.

“Can you still communicate somehow?” Zatanna asked softly, closing her book slowly and putting it down. Klarion swallowed nervously and looked like he was trying hard not to cry. He looked up at her with sad eyes.

“I can understand sometimes, we’ve picked up a few things over time... but it’s not the same... the emotion is missing...” A few tears finally fell down his hollow cheeks. He closed his eyes tightly, his shoulders were shaking. Zatanna felt her throat close up. This was all kinds of wrong. Severing Klarion’s bond from his familiar was obscenely cruel. He and Teekl were obviously suffering deeply, not just physically but emotionally. Klarion didn’t exactly have a support system at the cave, quite the opposite in fact. The Team had made it grossly clear that they wanted nothing to do with him. It was painful for Zatanna. She wanted to remain optimistic, that the Team would come around to Klarion like she had or that the League would ease up on all of these severe restrictions. But being optimistic about this situation became more difficult by the day. Klarion wasn’t even allowed outside for goodness sake.

The Justice League and the Team were meant to help those who were vulnerable and suffering, yet they consistently made it worse for the one that they physically and emotionally destroyed. Zatanna was a part of that group, she had helped bring Klarion down. She was complicit in his suffering, in their suffering. 

“I’m sorry.” She whispered, meeting his tearful gaze. Her throat felt so tight, she could barely get the words out. Klarion looked at her with pure confusion.

“Whatever for?” He asked, his unoccupied hand starting to fidget.

“I just-I... I-I’m part of the reason you’re... suffering.” Zatanna said, her voice strained and tight. Klarion’s face fell from curiosity to despair. He shook his head.

“No, you’re not.” He affirmed. His voice was grave and it was reminiscent of what he sounded like in battle.

“But I am!” Zatanna said straightening her back, throwing her hands out harshly. “I helped them defeat you! We destroyed you... y-you nearly died fighting alone against all of us!” A few tears fell from her eyes. “And-and we just left you to fend for yourself here...cut off from your natural abilities and your familiar, i-it’s just so horrible-“

“Zatanna.” Her mouth immediately closed. She couldn’t remember a time when Klarion had ever said her name. A shiver went up her spine. Not a bad one though, it was somehow... good. A warm feeling started to fill her chest, but her guilt didn’t disappear. Klarion sighed. “Listen to me. None of this is your doing.”

“But-“ Zatanna started.

“No, please. It isn’t. You are the only one, who doesn’t treat me like a monster and a threat. If it weren’t for your kindness... I don’t think I would ever leave my room. I likely never would have gotten Teekl back without you...” Klarion said, his tone holding a calm seriousness and sadness in it. He took a deep breath before reaching out to her with his injured arm. He put his hand over hers lightly. It sent electric pulses up her arm. She looked into his dark eyes. “I don’t exactly help myself by not telling you and them about the Light. Please... you are the only one to have shown me a fraction of kindness. This isn’t... your doing. Okay?”

A tear fell from his eye. He was dead serious in his conviction. He inclined his head and raises an expectant eyebrow. Zatanna sighed shakily.

“Okay.” She said softly. Klarion smiled at her, though his eyes still betraying his despair. He squeezed her hand before retracting it, the absence of that comforting weight on her hand stinging slightly. Zatanna looked down at that hand sheepishly, flattening it out a little where it rested on her leg.

Out of the blue, a thought came to Zatanna’s mind. One that she had been mulling over for several weeks at this point. Perhaps it wasn’t the appropriate time to ask, but somehow, some way, it finally felt right.

“Would you teach me?” She asked cautiously. Klarion’s jaw dropped and his eyebrows shot up in pure confusion. 

“What?” Klarion asked slightly flabbergasted.

“Will you teach me?” Zatanna repeated. Klarion started to look slightly fearful, he looked down at Teekl, seemingly not sure where to look. “I mean the way you have mastered your art, I can’t think of anyone better for me to learn from.” 

Klarion blinked several times. He looked at her with the most confused expression.

“I think... Nabu would make a better teacher... than me.” He said, finally looking at her again. Zatanna immediately shook her head. Her heart ached with sadness 

“No. I-I can’t... with him. For obvious reasons.” Her breath hitched, but she composed herself quickly. She really didn’t want to cry about this, it about Nabu. She had cried enough about it. Klarion looked at her with concern. “There is no one else and... I think you... could help me.”

Klarion seemed to be contemplating her request, Zatanna could almost see the gears turning in his head. He looked down at Teekl and sighed.

“Alright.” He simply said. Zatanna almost jumped where she sat. She smiled brightly started getting up. Klarion’s eyebrows raised as she went. “Oh you want to go now?” 

Zatanna stood up straight, book in hand and looked down at the chaos mage. She nodded quickly and reached her right hand out, intending for him to take it. Klarion put his injured arm under Teekl, careful not to jostle her too much. He then accepted Zatanna’s hand and she pulled him up. He winced and took a sharp breath, letting go of Zatanna’s hand to hold his injured side. She went to steady him but he stopped her.

“It’s okay.” He said, his voice strained. Klarion transferred Teekl to his good arm. Zatanna gave him a concerned look, but he smiled at her and nodded again. 

And so Zatanna started walking out of the room, Klarion followed, holding Teekl tightly. Just as she had suspected, the cave was mostly empty. If anyone was here they weren’t out and about, meaning that Klarion could teach Zatanna undisturbed. She was oddly excited, a fluttering feeling filling her chest. 

They found themselves on the training floor, it lit up as Zatanna walked on it. She walked to the centre and stopped, turning to Klarion. He wasn’t directly behind her like she thought, instead he was slowly edging towards her, his eyes glued to the lit up ground. She kicked herself, he wasn’t at all familiar with modern technology, meaning that the floor lighting up with her steps must have shocked him a little bit. He eventually reached her, the surprise evident on his face. He looked up at her, releasing a shaky breath.

“Uhm... so... what would you like to learn first?” Klarion asked cautiously. Zatanna went through the mental list she had been compiling for several weeks. She thought hard, there was so much she wanted to know. Needed to know. She eventually settled on something. Something she had never been able to do.

“Non-verbal magic.” She said sternly. Klarion’s face relaxed slightly. “Dad never got around to teaching me... and I’ve never been able to teach myself.” Klarion nodded as she spoke, his expression slightly solemn. He put his injured hand under his chin, his thumb over his mouth. He was silent for a few moments, deep in thought. Zatann just watched him, fascinated. He obviously couldn’t demonstrate what he wanted to teach her, that fact was evident in his defeated posture. 

“Right, I know what to do.” He suddenly said. He took a step back and faced Zatanna fully. He gave off an air of superiority, authority, someone who knew what they were doing. It was a confidence that she had scarcely seen since that fateful battle. “What I want you to do... is close your eyes and just listen to my voice... to what I tell you.”

Zatanna blinked a few times, uncertain. Klarion nodded at her. She took a breath and did as she was told. 

“Now I want you to reach inside yourself... and find the core of your magic... i-it should take the form of a wind of some sort.” He paused. “Mine is like a winter storm... yours would be... calmer I imagine.”

As she listened to his voice, Zatanna reached into herself, like Klarion had told her. She took deep breaths and concentrated hard. The world was drowning out, all that she was aware of was the life forces of herself and the two beings in front of her. For what felt like forever she searched inside of herself and just breathed.

Then, she found it. And it was beautiful. It was bright and calm, yet strong as well. She felt herself smile.

“I can see it, feel it too...” Her voice was excited and soft. “It’s like a warm summer breeze, bright and... weightless...”

“That’s good... let it wrap itself around you... take hold of it.” He paused. Zatanna did what he said. The warmth wrapped itself around her like a blanket. It was unlike any sensation she had ever felt. “Now give it an order, any order, something simple.... like ‘levitate’, but don’t say it out loud... it has to come from within....”

Zatanna repeated the word in her mind. Backwards, then forwards, then backwards again. She concentrated and concentrated, willing her magic to obey her. The warm breeze fluttered around her, continuous, never ending. Soon she felt nothing but her magic, working in unison with her mind. There was an imperceptible shift and Zatanna thought nothing of it until Klarion let out an excited gasp.

“Yes, yes! You’re doing it! Now hold it... hold the order... until you feel you can let it go without falling.” Klarion’s voice radiated with excitement. Zatanna concentrated even harder, focusing on the magic moving around her. Then, like a switch had been flipped, she let go of the order. She didn’t fall. She quickly opened her eyes, and saw herself a few meters off the ground. Klarion was looking up at her with a big smile, not the evil grin he had when they had battled before, no it was something akin to pure joy. 

Zatanna started to lower herself back to the floor. Her heart was beating hard against her rib cage. She had just done non-verbal magic, never did she think she would ever be able to do something like that. When her feet touched the ground, she took a few deep breaths all while searching for Klarion’s gaze. She was aware of everything once again, which was somewhat overwhelming. 

“Now obviously... you can’t do all that... in a battle... so you’ll need to practice a lot and with different spells.” Klarion said cautiously. Zatanna straightened, slightly embarrassed. That faded once Klarion smiled softly again. “But that was really good.” 

Zatanna let out a small sigh of relief and she smiled as well. 

“Thank you.” She whispered, taking a small step towards him. Klarion seemed unsure of what to do or say, Zatanna could tell. He seemed really happy for her, but he remained cautious, his tight grip on Teekl betraying that. 

“I-I can’t... show you anything, but... would you like to continue?” Klarion asked. Zatanna was surprised. Yes she really did. Already in that short time, Klarion had taught her something she had struggled years to even understand. His openness towards her and what seemed to be an eagerness to be around a magic user, comforted her guilt ridden heart. If this would improve his mental health even a tiny bit, Zatanna wouldn’t say no. She nodded rapidly.

“Yes. Yes I would.”

And continue they did.

__________________________________________

In New York City that same evening, Dr. Fate and Batman met at an old abandoned building. Only that it wasn’t abandoned, it was disguised as such. It was late and very dark, the thing illuminating the pair was a dim street lamp. Fate looked somehow skeptical as he surveyed his surroundings. Batman raised a covered eyebrow.

“You are sure this is where we will find Etrigan?” Fate asked, his overlapped voice betraying his discontent. 

“Yes. Though I am not sure who we will meet first.” Batman responded, going up to the door and knocking loudly. It was dead silent for a solid minute, it was deafening. 

Then the locks behind the door sounded. The sound pervaded that dead silence. The door began to open, slowly. Creaks sounded as the heavy door was pulled back, the echos sounding in and out of the building. Batman and Dr. Fate waited in anticipation. 

A figure stepped out of the darkness of the building. Tall and imposing, but it wasn’t Etrigan. Instead, out stepped a man, his hair black with a streak of white down one side. He wore all black, except for a brown jacket. He let out a deep chuckle upon seeing who had knocked on his door.

“Jason Blood.” Batman addressed him. Jason smiled.

“Ah Batman... and Nabu, to what do I owe the... displeasure.” Jason said in a snarky tone. Navy groaned slightly, already irritated.

“We need to speak with Etrigan, Blood. It’s important.” Batman said gravely. Jason simply clicked his mouth a few times.

“I’m afraid it’s not Etrigan’s day. Whatever this important thing is, unless it’s the end of the world, I’m thinking it can wait.” Jason said dismissively.

“We’ve no time for your antics Blood. We come for information on Klarion the Witch Boy, only the Demon can help us.” Fate said angrily. Jason’s face immediately dropped, the snark being replaced with something darker. There was a change in the atmosphere and the street light flickered. 

“Klarion? What about him?” His voice was devoid of the humour he had displayed not seconds ago. It sounded... protective.

“We need information on him, information that only Etrigan could have. So please, can we speak with him?” Batman asked, his usual gruff mixed with cautiousness. Jason’s eyes narrowed dangerously as he looked between the two Leaguers before him. 

“If you want to know anything by about Klarion, you’ll talk to me before you talk to Etrigan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooooooo Jason Blood is finally here :)))  
> Next chapter may take a wee bit longer just because it’s gonna be intense af and I want to get it right.  
> The song Klarion was playing was O Holy Night by Tracy Chapman, it’s beautiful I highly recommend you listen :)  
> Feedback is always welcome!


	12. XII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hallooo I’m back  
> Very dialogue heavy and I’ll do some explaining about what this was at the end  
> Hope you enjoy!

Jason Blood was a man of many words. He was blunt, but elusive all the same. He could talk himself out of anything without a pinch of sorcery if necessary or he could unleash his magic in complete silence. There was no predictability with Blood, which is why Batman and Dr. Fate followed him anxiously through the abandoned building. Blood had not said anything since letting them in, letting the two Leaguers stew in what he had said.

If you want to know anything about Klarion, you’ll talk to me before you talk to Etrigan.

His tone was serious and grave, his usually somewhat chipper and sardonic humour completely gone from his voice. It unsettled Batman greatly, as he had never, in all of his encounters with Blood, heard him react to something in that manner. Least of all a person. Nabu was not so concerned, his main priority was still very much getting information out of Blood and eventually Etrigan. 

They followed Blood through what seemed like endless hallways, every twist and turn bringing them further in. This building was meant to be abandoned, though it was anything but. The hallways were decorated as if it was for royalty, portraits and artefacts lined the walls unendingly. Much like the hallways, they eventually reached a room that was fit for a king. There was a large black marble fire place facing the doorway, a fire raging within. On the adjacent walls were heavy velvet crimson curtain, both drawn closed. There was a dark wooden table with loose papers and several books strewn over it. In the centre of the room were four arm chairs, all facing the fireplace and simultaneously each other. Truly fit for a king.

Blood left The Caped Crusader and the Lord of Order stand in awe of this room. He in the mean time made is way over to the table of papers and books. He was still silent, an eery and frightening calmness radiating off him. He was under no illusions as to what this conversation would lead to in regards to the Witch Boy. Blood possessed one half of the information these heroes needed and his demonic counterpart possessed the other. He would do this correctly and tactfully, since learning one half of this particular story without knowing the other could be detrimental to everyone involved. Blood turned back to the two heroes, now looking at him expectantly. He extended an arm towards the chairs.

“Please, sit.” He said, his voice even and grave. The heroes only hesitated a moment before heading his request. They walked with purpose towards the chairs, their strides quick and strong. Both heroes sat on neighbouring chairs, sitting on the edges of them, not quite getting comfortable. Blood raised an eyebrow in judgement but said nothing. He waited before joining them on the chair facing them, a healthy distance between the pair and himself. He crossed his legs and folded his hands in his lap, letting out a pointed sigh. “So. What is this information that you are looking for exactly? Klarion is not exactly a... common topic of conversation.” 

“We need to understand his past and his power better, we think it may help us... get information out of him.” Batman stated. Jason chuckled lightly under his breath.

“You’ll have to be more specific than that Bruce. ‘Getting information out of him’ can mean many different things.” Blood said coldly, the implications behind his words not lost on the two heroes. Before Batman could respond Nabu interjected, his voice perplexed.

“You know his secret identity?” Nabu asked crossing his arms over his chest. Blood raised an eyebrow.

“Well, yes. He himself told me.” Nabu looked to Batman, who nodded, agreeing with Blood. “I know many things Nabu, much like I know who is trapped in that god forsaken helmet of yours. Really, of all the people you could have enslaved, I think Giovanni Zatara was the least deserving.”

Blood smiled wickedly and Nabu went to argue, but was stopped by Batman’s hand. 

“That’s enough. We don’t have time for this.” Batman said pointedly at Nabu. He turned back to Blood, who still wore a wicked smile. “Jason, please, you need to tell us what you know about Klarion, he is the key to taking down the Light. They pose a legitimate threat and we need to stop them.” 

Blood dropped his smile and straightened, he rested his forearms on the chair, sighing sharply. 

“Fine, but first, tell me what you already know, so that I may correct you if necessary.” Blood said dismissively. Batman cleared his throat and Nabu started speaking.

“We know that he is a Lord of Chaos, an entity of some sort, that comes from a dimension named Limbo-“

“Let me stop you right there. Firstly he is not an ‘entity’, as you put it. He is a Witch-Man, a twisted and... corrupted sub-species of human.” Blood paused for a moment, contemplating. “And Limbo Town is not a dimension, it is a place, a civilisation buried deep under ground.”

“How did they get there?” Batman asked, confusion evident in his voice.

“It is said that their ancestors, therefore Klarion’s, were the Lost Colony of Roanoke, the one that disappeared in 1590 on Roanoke Island. They went underground... somehow, after many of their women were impregnated by the first Witch-Man, thus creating the Witch-People of Limbo Town.” Blood folded his hands in his lap once again. “Every single one of them are magic users, powerful ones and to my knowledge they lead an extremely strict Puritan type of life, only instead of worshipping Christianity, they worshipped dark magic. Necromancy as well.” 

Fate’s fists clenched tightly on the arm chair.

“You are saying that Klarion is a necromancer on top of being a Lord of Chaos?” Nabu’s voice dripped with disgust, his hatred for Klarion bleeding through. Blood simply nodded. 

“To my knowledge, yes. Though I have never seen it in practice. It could very well be that he never truly learned, he was quite young when I met him.” Blood leaned back in his chair.

“How young was he? We don’t have a clear idea of his age.” Batman said, leaning forward. Blood contemplated for a moment his face scrunching up slightly.

“He’ll be turning nineteen on the 21st of December and he was thirteen when I met him.” Blood saw the evident air of confusion that swirled around the heroes. This irritated him. “You do realise that he had a family and a life before he showed up on your radars. Klarion didn’t just come out of nowhere.” 

“Him? A family?” Nabu asked, scoffing at the idea. Blood figured out the source of his current irritation.

“Yes Nabu, a family. His mother, Charity. His father, Mordecai, who disappeared when Klarion was a baby. And his sister, Beulah.” Blood glared openly at Nabu. “His full name is actually Klarion Bleak.” 

“How is it you know all this? We couldn’t find anything at all, not nearly this detailed.” Batman asked, his curiosity evident. Blood’s glare flitted from Nabu to Batman, the rest of his not moving an inch.

“There were two occasions before Klarion made himself known to the world and subsequently you. I met him on the second occasion where he told me what I have told you.” Batman leaned in at his words.

“What happened on the first occasion?” Batman asked. Blood did not respond immediately, instead he stared into the fire that was raging to his left. He was silent for a full minute.

“That cat he carries around, his familiar. They got separated when they first came to the surface. Why they came, I do not know. But while he searched for her, many... bad things happened.” Blood paused, his next words still disturbed him to his core. “Klarion was nearly trafficked and sold into slavery, twice I think. His power and his magic drew a lot of attention from the wrong people. And after that, he had a run in with Melmoth, the Sheeda King and the first Witch-Man I mentioned before. He is immortal and... deeply evil.” Batman and Nabu exchanged looks.

“That would make Klarion his descendant then.” Batman stated and Blood nodded.

“Yes. Melmoth wanted to use Klarion to find Limbo Town and enslave the civilisation. Klarion couldn’t allow that, so he left to warn them. From what he told me, they were successful in driving Melmoth away and Klarion left Limbo Town again.” Blood stopped again, hesitation momentarily getting the better of him. “When we found each other he was... timid and hesitant... I could tell he was... traumatised. He didn’t divulge all that much and didn’t tell me me much else in the time he spent with me.” 

Nabu scoffed and chuckled dismissively, earning glares from both Blood and Batman.

“You allowed that evil to stay with you? You’re clearly not as perceptive as you think.” The disgust was stronger in Nabu’s voice, causing Blood’s irritation to surge. Batman stayed stoically silent.

“He was a scared and traumatised child, what would you have me do?” Blood asked straightening his back and throwing his hands up. “Just because he is your opposite does not mean he is evil. By nature he was never, evil. Not in my experience.” 

“He has done some pretty terrible things since then Jason. We needed the entire Justice League and our protégées to take him down.” Batman interjected. Blood looked at him with thinly veiled shock.

“All of you? Against Klarion alone? That seems like a little bit of overkill don’t you find?” Blood’s fists were clenched tightly and he wore a dark expression. He stood. “I hope you realise that this is precisely the reason Etrigan rejected your invitation to join your little group.”

He crossed his arms as the two heroes stood up as well.

“I have told you all that I know about Klarion, everything he told me. As promised I will summon Etrigan and he can tell you everything else you need to know.” Blood’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Tread carefully with this knowledge, in the hands of people with sinister motives it can be dangerous. And I would like to see him at some point soon.” 

It was not a request, more of a statement with implications attached. Batman nodded.

“I will see what I can do. And thank you Jason.” Batman said earnestly. Blood nodded once to Batman and then to Nabu, who remained silent. Blood made his way to the doorway. 

“Etrigan will return shortly.” And with that he disappeared.  
__________________________________________

As Jason Blood promised, Etrigan returned fifteen minutes later. Like Blood, he wore an unreadable expression, not betraying a single emotion. He sat down without a word, his clawed hands hovering over his chin. 

“I sincerely hope you have a good reason for disturbing me on Blood’s day.” Etrigan said pointedly. Batman shifted slightly in his seat.

“Klarion the Witch Boy.” Batman simply stated. The Demon dropped his hands. “We need information on hi-“

“I will assume it has to do with his ties to the Light and your... violent defeat of the boy.” Etrigan interjected. He sighed almost angrily. “I know Blood has a soft spot for him and if your reasons were good enough for him, then I have no choice but to abide.”

Batman and Fate let out imperceptible sighs of relief. If Etrigan had refused to speak with them then it would have been a difficult trip home. 

“Blood has told you what he knows then? What Klarion is. Where he comes from. His family. His power. The trafficking and Melmoth.” Etrigan listed with practiced ease. He looked at the two heroes expectantly, one brow bone raised. 

“Yes. Exactly that.” Batman responded. There was a pregnant pause, silence and tension filling the room. Etrigan raised his brow somehow higher.

“Well? What would you like to know first?” Etrigan said, his gaze going from Batman then to Fate. Nabu leaned forward.

“His power. I want to know the full extent of it.” Nabu said darkly. Zatara’s lifeless eyes behind the helmet seemed to shake, an emotion betrayed not by Nabu but by the host.

“From my understanding, there are three important aspects to it. The chaos magic, the homo-magi magic and the necromancy.” Etrigan saw the demeanours of both heroes change. This was new information for them then.

“I thought you said there were only two levels to him.” Batman said to Nabu, his tone angered. Fate grunted.

“Witch-Men of Limbo Town are always both homo-magi and necromancers. Klarion is no different. In fact, without the chaos magic he is already far more powerful than any other sorcerer I have encountered. With the chaos magic on top, he is arguably the most powerful sorcerer in the known universe.” Etrigan’s tone was calm and it came off as if this was common knowledge. “However, is not just talent and raw power. He is refined and he learns. He has mastered his art in a way that allows him to control every aspect of his magic. Klarion is fiercely intelligent, as well as powerful.”

The tension in the room was tight and thick. In the heroes minds, if there was a third level of magic they had not accounted for, they could very well be in danger. Batman turned to Etrigan, his concern radiating off him.

“Is two magical blocks enough to subdue him?” Batman asked, leaning forward. Etrigan shrugged his shoulders, his crimson eyes darting to one side.

“I would not know. No one has ever... contained Klarion to this extent before.” Etrigan’s eyes narrowed. An unspoken condemnation of the League’s actions against Klarion being communicated. “Had Blood mentioned why Klarion came to the surface, and how he defeated Melmoth?” 

Etrigan’s tone was suddenly far more grave, far more dark. Batman could tell that the subject matter was something that they would need to take seriously. The severity of everything else was not lost on him, but this seemed worse.

“No. He said that Klarion never went into detail, only that he seemed traumatised afterwards.” Etrigan let out a soft grunt at Batman’s words, his red eyes narrowing.

“Witch-Men have a certain ability, only the Witch-Men, the Witch-Women and children do not have this ability. They are able to merge with their familiars and become what is known as a Horigal.” Etrigan paused. Batman and Nabu looked puzzled, not quite understanding. “Horigals are immeasurably powerful beasts. They are invulnerable to almost anything. There is barely any awareness from the Witch-Man, making them feral and dangerous. Klarion was chased out of Limbo Town when a Horigal rampaged on the outskirts.” 

There was a shift in Batman and Nabu’s demeanour, a small amount of fear overshadowing their morbid curiosity. 

“When Klarion encountered Melmoth, after the trafficking incidents, Melmoth had stolen a large drill. He had wanted to invade Limbo Town, to enslave the Witch-Men and Women-“

“Yes yes, Blood told us this.” Fate interjected. Etrigan glared murderously at Nabu, his nostrils flared in anger and his snarl showing his demonic teeth. 

“Klarion went back to Limbo to warn the population that something was coming.” Etrigan paused and sighed sharply. “The Witch-People however, deny that there is a world beyond their own, it is treason, heresy, blasphemy, however you want to call it. Klarion’s warnings went unheard and when Melmoth attacked they were unprepared.” Batman leaned forward slightly.

“Blood had said that they managed to drive Melmoth away though.” Batman’s mind was racing. He wasn’t sure what to think. The many revelations contradicted the image of Klarion his mind was set on. Still. The underlying fear of the sheer amount of power in one unstable person overshadowed almost every other emotion.

“Yes, Klarion did. It is my understanding that he merged with his familiar and became a horigal. This should have been impossible, since Klarion was a witch-boy and witch-boys are not powerful enough to become horigals. Nonetheless he became one and drove Melmoth away.” Etrigan stood and went to stand by the dark fire place, his eyes glued to the fire.

“And then Klarion went back to the surface I’m assuming? Jason said that they came across each other after that.” Batman said crossing his arms. Etrigan turned back to the two Leaguers, his expression dark.

“Not quite.” Etrigan said, his clawed hands clenching. “The people of Limbo Town are not exactly forgiving. They believed that it was his doing that Melmoth attacked, that his heresy and treason angered a higher power. Limbo Town has a very... specific punishment for speaking of the outside world. It is ironic really, considering they are witches.” 

Batman and Nabu looked confused, not quite grasping what Etrigan was implying. Etrigan sighed and turned back to the fire. 

“They... burned him... at the stake. His own mother lit the fire and the whole population turned on him.” Etrigan’s voice was grave, the demonic voice ever present. The silence was deafening, Batman and Nabu stared in poorly veiled shock. This was... not at all what they expected. “I do not know how he escaped, only that the burns he sustained must have been quite severe.”

Batman was ever confused. If his memory served him correctly, the had never seen burns anywhere on Klarion’s body. If there had been any, the League would have seen them. 

“We never saw any burns when we treated him after the battle. They can’t have been that severe if they healed to the point where we can’t see them.” Batman said in disbelief. There was a denial in his voice as well. Etrigan’s head snapped towards the heroes. His brows were raised in shock.

“He was burnt at the stake Bruce, that leaves a mark. Particularly when the fire was set by necromancers.” Etrigan snarled, looking down on Batman and Nabu. “And if you did not see it, I would hazard a guess that Klarion may have put a glamour on himself.”

Fate cleared his throat and stared Etrigan right in the eye.

“That is not possible, with the blocks he has on a glamour wouldn’t hold.” Fate said almost angrily. Etrigan’s nostrils flared once more, his eyes narrowed dangerously. 

“A very powerful glamour then, one that I imagine will start to fail after some time with no access to his magic.” Etrigan’s voice was dripping with disgust. Disgust aimed towards Nabu. Both heroes stood, now eye level with the demon. “I have told you everything I know. Be wary with this information, use it wisely.”

His demonic red eyes bore into both heroes, a tamed anger rolling off of Etrigan. The silence was unbelievably tense. Neither Batman nor Dr. Fate knew what to do next. The revelations of this evening had set off many emotions. Emotions that would be conflicting going forward. Etrigan exhaled sharply.

“I sincerely hope that what Blood and I have divulged this evening is helpful.” Etrigan said walking past them. The yellow demon continued towards the doorway, before turning his head slightly towards the heroes. “See yourselves out.”

And like Jason Blood before him, he vanished behind the doorway, leaving Batman and Dr. Fate alone, with nothing but dark and conflicting thoughts about a certain witch-boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There it is, a backstory!  
> Basically I took several different iterations of Klarion and blended their backstories together. I also changed a few things in the chronology but they aren’t huge differences  
> I hope you enjoyed and feedback is always welcome :)


	13. XIII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m baaack  
> Usual triggers for references to depression and anxiety apply and the tiniest amount of swearing  
> Hope you enjoy!!

Zatanna and Artemis had been sent out on a stake out. Observe and report only. Under no circumstance engage with the targets. Easy enough. Or so Zatanna had thought. She had not been alone with Artemis on a mission in a long time. Recently, the team had been sent out with everyone present or with at least a group of four. She had felt excited at first, but a horrific tension settled over the two girls the moment they left the cave hanger.

They were sat on a building rooftop, across from a factory housing what Batman believed to be a weapon’s operation. They had been sat there for an hour at that point, watching the building and the people entering and exiting. They both had a pair of long range binoculars and Zatanna had cast a spell allowing her to hear conversations from a distance. So far it was unbelievably uneventful, but that was normal on stake outs. 

Zatanna sat with her back to the wall, her head leaning against the surface as she looked up at the night sky. It was cold, almost snowing. Her and Artemis were in their winter stealth to keep warm, but that didn’t stop Zatanna from debuting her new uniform. She had been mulling over this for weeks, her old uniform losing its appeal and simply didn’t function the way she wanted.

She had learned hand to hand combat over the last few years, her short range fighting becoming almost as good as her long range. Her old uniform didn’t allow for all that much movement because of the many tight layers. Instead of the more feminine version of what her father wore, she had changed it up completely. 

She wore a black corset made of kevlar with silver accents. She still wore the black tuxedo jacket, but it was slightly rounder to accommodate movement. Instead of tights and shorts she wore fitted black trousers that didn’t cut off blood circulation in her legs. She wore the same boots, white gloves and little bow tie around her neck, still keeping the whole stage magician look going. 

Zatanna was happy with herself, she felt more mature and she could actually move. Artemis hadn’t commented on the change, she hadn’t said anything really. Zatanna sighed and looked over the brick wall she was sitting against. It was quiet, like it had been all evening since she and Artemis had arrived. She looked towards Artemis who was looking through her binoculars. 

“Do you see anything?” Zatanna asked softly, moving to kneel by the wall. Artemis put the binoculars down and let out a frustrated sigh. She looked at Zatanna, her eyes betraying her irritation.

“Just the usual suspects going in and out. I think we have enough to report to Batman though.” Artemis said harshly. She then stood up and began to walk away with no other word at all. Zatanna was becoming frustrated. Why was Artemis being so stand offish and tense with her? They had barely had a conversation in weeks, only receiving tense looks from the archer when they were together. This was getting ridiculous.

Zatanna stood up quickly and followed Artemis’ tracks. Her fists were clenched and her breathing was hard. She walked up right next to Artemis.

“What’s going on Artemis? We haven’t talked in weeks and I can tell something is wrong.” Zatanna said slightly angrily. Artemis stopped in her tracks and turned back to Zatanna. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she wore an angry snarl. Artemis crossed her arms and sighed angrily.

“You really wanna know?” Artemis exclaimed, her voice doing that high pitched whine it does when she gets angry. Zatanna put her hands on her hips in an effort to control her movements. With the new non-verbal magic she had learnt from Klarion, she wasn’t sure when it would work or not.

“Yes! I do! You’re my friend Artemis.” Zatanna said taking a small step forward. Artemis let out a frustrated groan and she uncrossed her arms.

“Okay fine! I’m angry at you. We all are!” Artemis almost shouted. Angry? All? Zatanna became confused and her jaw dropped in shock. Did Artemis mean the team? Were they all angry with her? Why? 

“What is that supposed to mean?” Zatanna asked frustrated, her eyes angry and baring into Artemis.

“Ever since that psycho wizard child moved in with us you’ve been spending a weird amount of time with him! I don’t get it! He’s evil and he’s done terrible things! I don’t understand why you’re being so buddy buddy with him!” Her voice was hard and angry. Artemis had thrown her arms up to punctuate her point. Zatanna felt fury rise inside of her, a fury she was not at all used to. 

“What’s wrong with me getting to know Klarion?” Zatanna asked furiously. Artemis’ face scrunched up in a viscous snarl.

“Everything!” Artemis yelled throwing her arms up again. Zatanna flinched, only slightly. “Have you forgotten what he’s done! He made your dad Dr. Fate! He’s attacked us a dozen times! You’re basically betraying us by being friends with him!” 

“Betraying you?! How am I betraying you?! Trying to get to know Klarion is not a betrayal Artemis! It’s common decency!” Zatanna exclaimed, a snarl of her own gracing her face. A pang of anxiety went through her chest when she remembered Artemis’ words. “And what do you mean ‘us’?”

“All of us. The team. We don’t agree with you being friends with him. You’re changing because of him and not for the better!” Zatanna was taken aback by her words. She felt her magic change from a light summer breeze to a raging hurricane. She felt angry and hurt by her friends. Zatanna couldn’t remember a time her friends had ever made her feel this way and she hated it. 

What Artemis was insinuating annoyed her. That just because Klarion came from evil meant he was not at all capable of change. It was an ignorant way of thinking, especially since most of the team, including herself were not saints. And Zatanna knew better now, knew Klarion better. He wasn’t... inherently evil from what she could tell. He was shy, almost timid, but so articulate and intelligent when he wanted to be. He was opening up and she finally got a good sense of his personality. 

Zatanna had felt happier in getting to know Klarion than she had since her father had been taken from her. But now... her friends were questioning what she felt was the right thing to do. She hated how they were behaving, how they had been treating him. She sighed with a mixture of anger and sadness. 

“You’re such a hypocrite Artemis.” Zatanna said, her tone cold. She dropped her hands to her sides and walked past Artemis towards the door to the stairs. She didn’t even wait to see how Artemis reacted, Zatanna had no energy to deal with her or the team’s hostility.

“What?! How am I the hypocrite? I’m not the one who’s done terrible things in service for the Light!” Artemis exclaimed, her voice becoming high pitched once more. Zatanna got angry at that. Really angry. She stopped and whipped around.

“That’s just it! You may have not done things to that extreme but you’ve done some pretty shitty things in your time Artemis!” Zatanna hissed. “You lied to us for months about your family and have done some questionable things on the battlefield! We all have! And I know you still meet up with Jade without telling us.” Artemis seemed taken aback, her expression guilty. “I have never judged you for any of that, because none of us are saints! So why is me trying to get to know Klarion such a horrible thing?!”

“Zatanna he is the enemy! We’re supposed to be getting information out of him! Not becoming best friends with him! We are the good guys and he is part of the bad guys! There is a difference Zee!” Artemis asserted as she took a step closer. Zatanna only felt more angered.

“It was almost 40 of us against him alone. We injured him so badly he almost died. He is terrified of us and the League. Have you and the rest considered that?” Zatanna said in a scarily even tone. She was done shouting. This argument was not worth her energy. “I’m done trying to justify this to you or Dick or Wally or Conner or any of you. I’m so sick of you treating him like the plague and a threat, it’s just not right. Klarion is my friend and I’m done with this conversation since it’s clear you’ve already made up your mind about this.”

She stared daggers at Artemis, making her feelings known. She meant every word. She was tired of justifying what she was doing. Simply put, she wanted to be Klarion’s friend and there was nothing wrong with that. The Team were far too self righteous and self important to understand that right now. And that made Zatanna unbelievably sad and angry at the same time. Artemis stayed silent and Zatanna took that as her cue to leave.

“I’m going home, I’ll send the report to Batman.” Zatanna said coldly. Artemis only gave a single nod, the anger and frustration not lost on Zatanna. She took one last look at the blond archer before assuming her usual chanting position.

“Zee...”

“Ekat ot eht tseraen atez ebut.”

One moment she was stood in front of Artemis, the next she was by an old phone booth. The usual cover for the zeta tubes. There was a growing lump in Zatanna’s throat and a familiar sting behind her eyes. She felt hurt by Artemis, by the rest of the team as well. She was determined not to cry until she reached the safety of her room. Her emotions far too volatile to deal with another attack she knew was coming if she came across one of her teammates. 

She quickly jumped into the zeta tube, letting the energy transport her back to the cave. Her chest was washed with a cold feeling of hurt and sadness when the golden light cleared. She looked around. The cave was blessedly devoid of her teammates. Zatanna walked down the steps and slowly walked towards the residents hall. She was tired and her emotions were all over the place. She wanted nothing more than to just curl up in her bed and sleep. Maybe also cry a little. 

A small noise suddenly brought her out of her thoughts as she crossed the large space. The origin of the noise was Klarion talking impossibly softly to Teekl who walked by his feet. Today he wore a pair of black sweats and a much too big navy sweater. He was just coming out of the residents hall it would seem. 

He looked up and when he saw Zatanna, his face broke out into the sweetest smile she had ever seen. It filled her with warmth and it gave her butterflies. Zatanna suddenly felt a strong urge to cry again, this time she had no way of stopping it. There were just too many emotions and she was only a small person. 

She made a beeline towards the witch boy as he walked slowly towards her. Klarion didn’t stop smiling, his dimples making him look healthier than he had in weeks. 

“Hello you.” Klarion said softly. Zatanna smiled tearfully as they reached each other. Her tears of frustration and hurt started flowing down her cheeks, she sniffled a few times too. Klarion suddenly looked concerned, his smile faltering.

Then before she could stop herself, she closed the distance between her and Klarion, carefully wrapping her arms around him. She buried her face into his uninjured shoulder and silently cried.  
__________________________________________

Klarion was unsure of what was happening. Zatanna was... hugging him? And crying too? He could feel her shaking slightly and a small dampness spreading over his shoulder. Not that it bothered him. He was tense though, since no one ever really touched him unless they wanted to hurt him, with very few exceptions. He was overcome with a concern he had only ever felt for Teekl, which scared him a little bit. 

He slowly wrapped his arms around the dark haired girl, careful not to jostle his injuries too much. He pulled her closer, holding her tightly. Klarion rested his chin on the top of her head, feeling the slight tremor as she silently cried. He didn’t really know what to do, he’d never ever hugged anyone like this, hugged anyone period in fact. 

“Is everything okay?” He asked softly. Zatanna sniffled and she shook her head. Klarion felt a small tremor pass through her, prompting him to hold her as tightly as his injuries would allow. He was still confused as to why this was happening. After all, who would want to hug him?

“Do you... want to talk about it?” He asked barely above a whisper. Klarion felt Teekl by his ankles, her small body resting between the two mages. Zatanna sniffled again and gave one tiny nod, but she didn’t move to disengage the hug. Klarion’s heart beat furiously in his chest, his anxiety spiralling for reasons he couldn’t fully identify. It wasn’t the usual crushing and suffocating anxiety he had been feeling since he had been captured. It was... lighter and still cold, but it wasn’t choking the life out of him. Klarion pulled back slightly, trying to get a look at Zatanna’s face. She inhaled sharply and kept her head down, allowing her tears to slide down her face. 

“Come on, let’s go somewhere else.” Klarion said pulling away, but still keeping his uninjured arm around Zatanna. He led her towards the residents hall, with Teekl right behind them. They walked at a slow pace, Klarion not entirely sure who was leading who at this point. Zatanna’s shaking had subsided as they walked, her tense shoulder relaxing under Klarion’s hand. They reached her door and she finally pulled away, leaving Klarion feeling a little bit empty. 

Zatanna stepped towards the door and pressed a button on the panel to the left. It slid open with a swish and she quickly stepped in. Klarion stood still, not sure if he should go in or not. He watched from the hallway as Zatanna shed her uniform coat and drop it on the ground. Her hair fell down her back like a waterfall of black ink, her pale skin making her look ethereal. 

Beautiful, he thought. Klarion suddenly realised what he had said to himself and he quickly looked at the floor. Teekl was sitting just in front of his feet, watching Zatanna as she pulled her boots off. 

Then, to Klarion’s surprise, Zatanna walked to her bed and fell into it, laying on her side facing the door. She made a small gesture with her hand and one of the lights blinked on. Klarion’s chest aches to go and sit by her, but he still wasn’t sure what to do. Did she want him in her bedroom? Did she even really want to tell him what was going on? She had listened and been so patient with him when he wouldn’t speak in full sentences. He wanted to do the same, but he just didn’t understand if she wanted that from him of all people.

Before he could think of anything else, Teekl abandoned her spot at Klarion’s feet and waltzed into Zatanna’s bedroom. Klarion stood slightly shocked as he watched his familiar hop onto the bed. Teekl hopped over Zatanna’s legs and pawed at her arms impossibly gently. Zatanna lifted her arm slightly and to Klarion’s surprise, his beloved cat snuggled up to the girl’s chest. Klarion looked on with a tenderness in his heart, something he hadn’t felt since he was a child. 

Ignoring his anxiety, he stepped into the room, pressing the panel to his left to close the door. He walked to the bed and slowly lowered himself to the floor. He grimaced as he went, his ribs being assaulted with a sharp pain. Once he was comfortable he met Zatanna’s watery eyes. He smiled at her and put a sharp nailed hand on Teekl’s small head.

“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Teekl cuddle up to someone like this.” Klarion whispered, scratching behind the tabby cat’s ear. Zatanna smiled and giggled softly, her eyes darting from Klarion to Teekl. He sighed softly. “Why were you crying?”

Zatanna’s eyes watered a bit more when she met his eyes once again. She sighed shakily.

“It would seem... that the team don’t like that I’m friends with you... and Artemis just said some hurtful things to me...” She murmured, her voice filled with a poorly hidden hurt. Klarion blinked a few times and looked down. He had always thought that this team were close and inseparable. Lord knows when they had fought him they always had each other’s backs, something Klarion had envied at times. He had always been alone, save for Teekl, even when he was surrounded by allies with the Light. Even then, he had felt lonely. To think that Zatanna’s team was starting to make her feel this way... didn’t feel right. She deserved to be surrounded by friends, unlike him. He knew it was selfish to want to be Zatanna’s friend, since that friendship was starting to cost her her actual friends. 

“You don’t have to... keep talking to me if... that’s costing you your friends...” Klarion said softly. Zatanna’s eyes widened and she lifted her head off the bed. 

“What, no!” She exclaimed, causing Teekl to flinch slightly. “I don’t want to have to give up either. I’m not in the wrong here, I’m sure of that. They’re being unreasonable and hostile and I hate it. This whole situation... has brought out the worst in them and it hurts that they don’t see that I’m trying to do something good.” Her voice was even, though not devoid of her previous sadness. Klarion was slightly taken aback. Never in his life has anyone ever come to his defence in this way. She let her head fall back on the bed and their eyes met once more. “They don’t understand that being your friend is not a bad thing, regardless of what you’ve done. In fact, getting to know you and learning from you has made me... genuinely happy for the first time in a while.” 

Klarion blinked disbelievingly. This was... a lot. To be wanted was something completely alien to him. He had never been wanted. Even the Light, they wanted his power, never Klarion as a person. He looked down at the hand that was atop Teekl’s head, staring at it to stop himself crying. Not out of depression or crushing anxiety or physical pain, but happiness? He was so beyond confused. 

His hand shook and Klarion saw a flash of red on that hand. His skin flickered a few times and he suddenly felt the urge to wretch. His breathing stopped for a moment. This couldn’t be happening, not now, not ever. He slowly pulled his hand back, trying to ignore the violent shaking that was taking over both of his arms. A numbness he had started to recognise as a sign of a panic attack was settling in. No. Not now. 

He grabbed his injured hand with his right one, holding his hands together in a vice grip, willing the tremors to cease. They didn’t, but Klarion managed to keep the anxiety attack at bay. He looked to Zatanna again, who seemed to be unaware of his internal struggle. Better that way, he thought. 

“Do you want to vent?” He asked carefully. 

And vent she did. She talked and he listened. He found that she had no hatred towards her team, only that she was beyond frustrated that they were being so difficult. They stayed there for hours, Klarion just sat on the floor close to the bed where Zatanna lay on her side. Teekl just slept through the exchange, blissfully unaware of everything except Zatanna’s body heat. Klarion listened closely with no judgement. And when Zatanna fell asleep mid sentence, he just smiled, standing up to put a blanket over her and his cat. 

For the rest of the night he sat with his back against the bed, close to his familiar and his only friend, staring at his shaking hands. He was beginning to fear, that a barrier, his very last defence, was finally breaking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A nice tender moment before we move on to much darker stuff *evil laugh*   
> I’m sorry I make the team look like assholes but that will change eventually maybe  
> Hope you enjoyed it and feedback is always welcome !!


	14. XIV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m back a bit early :)  
> A bit shorter than usual, but it’s basically a prelude to a super angst/dark/depressing set of chapters that follow  
> I hope you enjoy!

Nabu had waited years for this moment. He had waited what felt like several life times for the chance to finally put Klarion in his place again. The vile witch boy would not dare cross him again unless he truly had a death wish. The eternal struggle of chaos versus order was finally going to have some semblance of a victor. Fate felt a thrilling anticipation, as he went over the damning information that he had gathered.

Fate had the ammunition and he was prepared to use it. With the entirety of the League and Team watching, he would break the witch boy beyond repair. Never again would he have to engage in the everlasting conflict with him. Ever. Nabu was going to get answers, he was going to get to the Light through this agent of chaos. He was tired of waiting for the Team to do what was necessary. 

Nabu entered the interrogation room where the League had put Klarion, surrounded by several hidden cameras. The lord of order was met with the wide and fearful black eyes of his one true enemy. Oh, this would do perfectly.  
__________________________________________

Zatanna felt a certain anxiousness settle in her chest. Batman had summoned the whole team and Klarion to the main hall, saying that they were all going to the Watchtower and that they needed to be in uniform. Why? No one knew. Only that it required extreme security.

Seven Leaguers were present: Batman, Dr. Fate, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Flash, Martian Manhunter and Superman. The first clue that this was not a typical field trip was when Fate turned the gold cuffs on Klarion’s wrist back into shackles. Klarion had immediately held Teekl tighter, his arms visibly starting to shake. Zatanna had wanted to go to him and tell him everything was going to be okay, but a wall of Leaguers separated the witch boy from the Team. 

To make matters worse, the Leaguers were bringing Klarion to the Watchtower before the Team, which caused Zatanna’s anxiety to surge. She was unbelievably worried. Her worry was momentarily replaced by anger when Superman grabbed Klarion hard by his injured bicep, eliciting a pained groan from him. The Kryptonian didn’t relent though, only pushing Klarion towards the zeta tubes with Green Arrow and Dr. Fate flanking the duo on either side. 

Klarion had looked back at her with fearful eyes before he was pushed through the zeta tube. Zatanna had desperately tried to communicate, some way some how, that everything would be okay. But once the bright light of the tubes dissipated Zatanna knew that no good could come out of whatever this was. 

Now, she was being led somewhere by Batman, away from where everyone else had convened. They passed Leaguers headed to where herself and Batman had just left, all of them in full uniform. So many questions raced through Zatanna’s mind, none of them getting immediate answers. It wasn’t until they were coming up on a set of doors that Zatanna decided to say something. She took a few quick steps and caught up to Batman.

“Where are we going?” She asked, her head turned towards Batman. He didn’t immediately say anything, instead just sighing, making Zatanna slightly irritated. Once they reached the doors, Batman suddenly turned to face her, his expression stony as always.

“Klarion is about to be interrogated in there.” He said pointing towards the first door. It was made of metal and it looked heavy. Zatanna felt her stomach drop and a cold sensation fill her chest. Another interrogation. This time on the Watchtower. This could not be good. “The League needs the magic users nearby in case anything goes wrong.” 

“Nabu is the only other magic user. Where is he?” Zatanna asked crossing her arms. 

“He will be conducting the interrogation. New information had come to light that creates concerns for the League.” Batman answered, his voice not betraying a single emotion. Zatanna raised a skeptical eyebrow. She knew Batman was deliberately keeping something from her, something important from the sounds of it. To have the whole League and Team present on the off chance that something could go wrong was strange. Why? Why was all this necessary? What exactly did they believe could go wrong? Klarion’s magic was completely bound, he was completely vulnerable to everything and everyone. Zatanna was about to continue questioning, but Batman continued speaking. “We’ve brought someone from the outside to help in a worst case scenario.”

He paused going to open the door behind him. He gestured for her to go inside. There she could see the profile tall man, his posture tense where he stood.

“I need to take care of something before this starts. I’ll be right back, so in the mean time you can get acquainted.” And with that, Batman gestures more forcefully for Zatanna to enter. So she did and with a slam of the heavy door behind her, she was alone with this man she had never met before. 

She looked up and met his eyes. He was older, possibly late forties, jet black hair with a white stripe going through it. His eyes were kind, but his expression was grave, a furrow in his eyebrows giving him away. His eyes narrowed slightly, before they widened again with recognition. 

“You really are the spitting image of your father, do you know that?” The man said suddenly. Zatanna’s jaw dropped a little, her eyes widened. 

“You know my dad?” Zatanna asked shakily, taking a small step forward. A tiny smile graced the man’s face.

“Oh yes, lovely man. A few occasions in our line of work required our... joint magical efforts to win the day.” He said nonchalantly. “I’m Jason Blood by the way.”

He extended his hand and Zatanna finally understood who he was.

“Oh! You’re Etrigan’s host.” She said quickly. Blood chuckled lightly, clearly a little uncomfortable. Zatanna extended her own hand sheepishly. “Sorry. I’m Zatanna.”

The small smile returned and Zatanna was grateful for it. 

“Pleasure.” Blood said nodding his head towards her. Once he let go of her hand he looked back to where he had been looking before she entered. The smile dropped very quickly, replaced with a seriousness that could instil fear in anyone. Zatanna followed suit and she found herself looking through a window. No, not a window she quickly realised. It was a two way mirror. 

On the other side was Klarion, sitting alone at a metal table, his golden shackles shining in the light. Klarion was hunched over and shaking, his eyes darting around the room fearfully. The inhibitor collar looked like it weighed him down more than usual, his thin neck struggling to hold his head up. While his eyes were full of fear, they also revealed a deep exhaustion, one that was causing him to betray his emotions more and more. At a certain point he brought his right hand to clamp over his mouth, his eyes shutting tight. He stayed like that for a few seconds not making a sound. His sharp nails stood out starkly on his painfully pale skin, a sign of just how poor his health was. He put his hand down and looked as if he was trying to calm his breathing.

The more Zatanna stared the more saddened and angry she felt. She suddenly felt a spike of fear go up her spine. Teekl wasn’t there. They had taken her again. No, no. This was not good.

“This is... not what I was expecting.” Blood said suddenly, his voice slightly horrified. Zatanna looked away from Klarion to the man next to her. “I’ve been standing here for... twenty minutes trying to understand what I’m looking at. When they said that they had captured him I...”

He trailed off, Blood’s tone was grave and his eyes did not for a moment leave the witch boy.

“This is far worse than I could have imagined.” Blood almost whispered, his voice deep and penetrating. “I knew Klarion before all of this... binding him like this is beyond cruel. And his injuries... you would think the so called good guys would do better.” That, Zatanna agreed with. Blood’s voice had a defensive quality when he was talking about Klarion, something Zatanna had discovered was exceedingly rare. She looked back at Klarion, who was nervously fidgeting with his shackles. Her heart ached.

“The League have been disappointing in that area.” She said sadly, crossing her arms over her chest. Just as Blood was going to respond, the loud screech of the metal door interrupted him. Their heads snapped up and in walked Batman, holding a carrier with gold accents. The door slammed closed once again, the sound echoing loudly. In the adjacent room, Klarion flinched violently, his eyes scanning the room in search for the origin on the sound. 

Batman placed the carrier on the table in the corner and Zatanna had a sick feeling as to who exactly was in it. She stared daggers at Batman, who all but ignored her gaze.

“You know Bats, when I said I wanted to see Klarion, this is not what I meant. I want to talk to him.” Blood said forcefully, his voice louder than before. He crossed his arms, looking expectantly at Batman, his murderous gaze matching Zatanna’s.

It was then that she realised and understood, Klarion had four people fighting in his corner. Flash, Captain Marvel, herself and Jason Blood. In an instant, she found a confidence in herself to do something daring, knowing full well that Blood would come to her defence just to spite Batman and the League. 

She stepped over to the carrier and magically unlocked it, the weak lock immediately failing. She heard Batman grunt in slight protest, but she paid it no mind. Zatanna pulled Teekl out gently, arranging the little orange cat comfortably in her arms. The tension in Teekl’s body seemed to melt out of her once she realised who was holding her, a small sense of security settling over her. Blood and Batman looked on in slight surprise, but neither said anything when they met Zatanna’s venomous stare. No one would harm this cat.

Just as Zatanna turned to look at Klarion, the heavy metal door in the interrogation room opened. And in came Dr. Fate. 

Klarion looked at Nabu with terrified eyes as the lord of order made his way around the table. Zatanna felt a palpable tension in her back and her heart speed up. She glanced at Blood who looked deeply troubled, his eyes narrowed and eyebrows furrowed. They watched as Nabu sat down directly across Klarion, the stark contrast between the two on opposite sides of a never ending conflict so painfully obvious.

And so, the interrogation began, for all the Team and the League to watch, much to Zatanna’s dismay.  
__________________________________________

Klarion felt as though his heart was going to break out of his chest, could feel it pounding hard against his rib cage. An all too familiar panic had set in once Superman had ripped Teekl from his arms and pushed him into the interrogation room. The sound of the door locking echoed throughout the room, causing Klarion to flinch violently. A cold feeling of dread settled over him as he looked around the stale room. 

Tears started prickling behind his eyes and his arms shook from fear. Whatever the League was doing was beginning to terrify him. The shackles weighed his whole being down, screaming at him. His mind started spiralling with dark thoughts, threatening to swallow him whole. 

Klarion was suddenly startled out of his thoughts when the metal door creaked and swung open. In walked Nabu and Klarion felt his heart stop for a few seconds. He was completely vulnerable and now Klarion felt truly scared. The League had taken his powers away, his only defence, meaning that of Nabu felt inclined to kill him, he wouldn’t be able to stop it. 

Fate sat down across him, Giovanni Zatara’s lifeless green eyes baring into Klarion’s dulled black ones. Order and chaos were now on a battlefield of sorts, the odds incredibly unfair. Klarion wondered in the back of his mind if Zatara was even opposed to what Nabu was doing, or if he, like almost everyone else, wanted to see him suffer. He remembered when Kent Nelson was still Fate’s host and they did not outright hate one another every time they encountered each other. Much had changed since then. Klarion took a shuddering breath and found the shreds of what was left of his confidence.

“What is this Nabu? Where is Teekl?” He asked, hating the way his voice shook with fear. Klarion’s heart beat faster with every passing second. Fate stayed silent for a few moments, making anxiety induced tremors go through the witch boy’s injured arm. Klarion was about to ask again when Nabu leaned forward in his chair, his movements unbearably slow. Klarion froze.

“You and I are going to have a little conversation.” Fate’s voice was scarily even and low. He brought his elbows onto the table and interlaced his fingers. “And by the end of it you will give me what I want.” It was more of a threat than anything else and it reverberated through Klarion’s very soul. He knew exactly what Nabu wanted from him, what the League and the Team had been trying to get from him for three months. He wanted to run, far and hide away. He knew though, that he had no choice but to stand his ground. He shakily shook his head.

“I’m not saying anything.” Klarion rasped, looking away and down at the table. Zatara’s eyes were unnerving. He suddenly understood how Zatanna always felt during her close interactions with Dr. Fate.

Nabu chuckled darkly, causing a shiver to go up Klarion’s spine. The lord of order leaned in closer, making the lord of chaos flinch ever so slightly.

“You will witch boy. Because I know everything there is to know about you... Klarion Bleak.” Klarion’s head shot up, his eyes wide and jaw dropped. Klarion Bleak. He hadn’t been addressed by that name in... a long time. How in God’s name did Nabu know his surname? His actual surname. His breathing sped up and his heart pounded even harder. “And everyone is watching boy. So if you do not want your heinous past unveiled, you will give me what I want.”

A pulsing cold filled Klarion’s chest at Nabu’s words. They were being watched. He was being watched. Nabu sounded far too confident for this to be a bluff, making Klarion all the more terrified. He felt his throat close up slightly and his injured arm trembled so violently it almost hurt. He couldn’t do this, whatever this was. He couldn’t relive everything he had forced himself to forget. Mentally, emotionally... and physically. Not in front of all these so called heroes. Not in front of everyone who had done him harm and clearly intended hurt him more. No, no. If he revealed anything about the Light, they would surely make him suffer a hundred times over for it. They knew how. They knew where to strike. That’s why he feared the Light infinitely more than the Justice League. Klarion could feel the war with himself prickling inside of him. There was no way out of this stalemate, he was stuck. The storm inside him raged and raged at this realisation.

Klarion met Zatara’s lifeless eyes once more and a single tear fell from his onyx eye. He could feel Nabu’s smugness radiating from the faceless gold helmet and he felt sick. 

“Let this be a lesson to you boy, Order will always triumph over Chaos.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ....   
> sorry I left yall hanging but its necessary  
> Lemme know what you think!


	15. XV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go, some dark stuff.  
> Tw: anxiety, depression, graphic description of injuries, brief mention of suicidal thoughts, questionable interrogation tactics.
> 
> I hope you enjoy the whump!

“Let this be a lesson to you boy, Order will always triumph over Chaos.”

But... it wasn’t meant to. That was the point of their existence. A balance between Order and Chaos was meant to be maintained. Order isn’t supposed to triumph, nor should Chaos. Klarion realised in that moment sitting across from Nabu, on a battlefield so painfully unfair, that his Lord of Order had lost sight of that.

The inhibitor collar and the shackles felt impossibly tight at Nabu’s words. A prickling went up Klarion’s spine. He was afraid. Afraid of what Nabu knew and what he would do. His past was something that he himself didn’t even touch. Klarion had forced himself not to think about certain parts of it to keep his sanity. Fate couldn’t possibly know all of it... Just because he knew Klarion’s surname doesn’t mean he knew much else... right? 

Klarion felt his finger tips start to numb, something he had discovered meant that an oppressing panic and misery was infiltrating his body. His breath was shaking and his eyes stung. He couldn’t bring himself to look up at Nabu’s faceless helmet, the power imbalance between them intimidated him for the first time in years. As the deafening silence stretched out in the cold room Klarion felt as though he was losing control. Precious control that kept some of his more vile and poisonous chaos at bay.

“Well, Witch-Boy, I believe we should get started.” Nabu said darkly. His voice was low and menacing, sending a horrid spike of dread through Klarion. He didn’t remember Nabu being so unsettling in their previous encounters. He didn’t lift his eyes, instead they flitted from side to side, not sure where to look. “There are three things we want from you, in regards to the Light.”

Nabu opened a file that Klarion had not noticed until then. Klarion’s gaze snapped towards it, a growing dread pervading his body as the Lord of Order scanned the paper with Zatara’s dead eyes. He could feel Nabu’s gaze on him a moment later, burning holes into him.

“Locations. Plans. And members.” Nabu listed, punctuating each word. Klarion’s head inclined up slowly, his gaze finally meeting Fate’s. His shoulders shook and his injured hand trembled hard against his leg. “I do not care which order, but just so you are aware, this is what I want.”

Klarion’s thoughts were spiralling and spirally fast. What Nabu wanted, what the League wanted, he could not give them. Locations and plans were never solid or tangible, they always changed. Vandal Savage made sure that as few people as possible knew anything and Klarion was often not privy to that information. This would be an unbelievably awkward situation when Nabu realised that Klarion really knew nothing. The only information of value that Klarion possessed was the names of the members of the Light.

And if he wanted to live through this ordeal... he simply couldn’t give up those names. Else both sides of the conflict would make him suffer.

“I sincerely hope you decide to say something...” Nabu said menacingly, a predatory undertone in his voice that made Klarion’s skin prickle. “Because my patience with you already wears thin boy. And I do not think you want me exposing to everyone... just how tainted your past really is.”

A violent tremor ran through Klarion’s body at the word tainted. His past was dark and horrid and he did not want to relive it in front of all these heroes. No no, he couldn’t. And without Teekl to calm him? It would destroy him, he knew. He looked at Nabu with pleading eyes, his jaw trembling as he prepared to speak.

“Why Nabu? Why are you doing this?” Klarion asked shakily. His voice was shaky and low, barely above a whisper. “What have you done with my familiar?” 

Nabu chuckled darkly, Zatara’s own voice mixing in. The result was deeply unnerving and Klarion couldn’t imagine what Zatanna must be feeling if she was watching. Nabu leaned forward on his elbows, his gaze fixated on Klarion.

“That thing is safe, have no fear.” Nabu said mockingly. It was impossible for Klarion not to feel fear. It was all he felt. He wanted to see with his own eyes that Teekl was safe, not being able to blindly trust Dr. Fate. “In regards to your first question, I do this because I can. While this... ordeal with the Light is important, our ceaseless conflict between Order and Chaos goes beyond that of earthly mortals. If the downfall of the Light means that of yours as well, then I will devote all of my energies to it.”

Klarion was shocked at Nabu’s words. He was well and truly terrified now. His hands fidgeted with increasing anxiety, causing the clinking of the shackles to echo loudly across the room. The inhibitor collar felt tighter. 

“B-but this is no longer O-Order versus Chaos Nabu. This is your... personal vendetta a-and abhorrence for me-“ Klarion looked from left to right, not knowing what he was looking for. He only knew that he was terribly afraid. “T-this-this isn’t fair. Y-you can’t block my power a-and take my familiar away and s-still call this a conflict between Order and Chaos.”

Klarion felt his whole body tremble. Nabu’s silence caused the pit of dread in Klarion’s stomach to grow and grow. He heard Nabu sigh sharply, before Zatara’s dead eyes met his, only this time the air around the golden helmet was murderous.

“I told you my patience wears thin boy.” Nabu stood slowly from his chair, causing Klarion’s heart to leap in his chest. He started to pace, impossibly slowly. “Shall I tell you what I have learned about you? I find it fascinating. Where you come from. What you are.”

Nabu came slightly closer and looked down at Klarion. He leaned in slightly.

“Who your family is.” Klarion’s eyes snapped up and they widened impossibly largely. His jaw dropped slightly. Surely Nabu wouldn’t. He couldn’t. 

“You were born on the Winter Solstice. You come from Limbo Town, an underground wasteland that houses a perverted sub species of occult human, hailing from one vile ancestor.” Klarion could feel the disgust radiating off of Nabu as he spoke. Disgust directed at him. His heart was beating furiously in his chest, pounding against his rib cage as if it was begging to be released. A deep and dark part of himself was beginning to unravel, threatening to swallow him whole. “And on top of you being a vessel of chaos, you practice necromancy-“

“Nabu-“

“-the most egregious of magical practices.” Nabu’s hatred for Klarion was evident in his tone. Klarion’s breathing was becoming increasingly shaky. “But it is not just you is it? No, the entire population practices that perverted magic-“

“Stop-“

“-your family as well.” Nabu spat hatefully. Klarion’s injured hand trembles erratically and his chest begins to tighten. “Mordecai... Charity...”

Klarion gasped softly, his heart skipping a beat at the sound of his father and mother’s names. Names he had not heard since... since...

“And Beulah of course.”

The hairs on the back of Klarion’s neck stood up straight. His sister. A wave of sadness washed over him at the thought of Beulah, the sister he had loved so dearly, loved more than his mother and the father he never knew. He had not thought about his sister in a long time, especially because of the way he had parted from her and everyone in Limbo Town. In the years since he had departed, Teekl had filled the void that his family had left in him. Klarion fought the tears that were forming behind his eyes.

“H-How do you-“

“Does it matter? If you do not want me to continue down that path, you will give me information.” Nabu placed his hands on the table across Klarion and leaned in closer. Klarion had to resist the urge to leaned back, every nerve in him screaming to get away. He looked up tearfully at Fate, he remained silent, not daring to speak. When Nabu next spoke it sent fear straight into Klarion’s soul. His voice was louder and grave, his anger and hatred shining through. “Locations and plans Witch Boy!”

“I don’t know anything!” Klarion blurted out, his hands coming up a fraction protectively. “We moved around constantly... w-we didn’t stay put for long! T-they they didn’t tell me their plans! I’m a vessel of chaos- I-I was a glorified distraction!” His voice was desperate and it echoed sharply off the metal walls. His confession only seemed to anger Nabu.

“Do you truly believe we are that naive? With the amount of power you hold, you expect me to believe that you did not take a sick joy in carrying out their diabolical plans?” Klarion felt the panic inside him surge. He didn’t know how to express that he truly and honestly wasn’t told any of the important plans. He took joy in creating chaos, that was part of his purpose, but it wasn’t everything. He was a teenager when Savage found him, he didn’t know what he was doing, not really. He knew that The Light were attracted to his power and not him. He had also realised in his lowest moments during his captivity that they had known exactly how to manipulate him to their needs without actually telling him... anything. Klarion looked to Nabu, his eyes glassy with unshed tears. 

“I-I didn’t- t-they never-“ His voice was impossibly small, he felt like a cornered animal. 

“Do not LIE to me.” Nabu growled. Klarion’s heart beat so furiously he thought it was going to explode. The lord of Order moved closer and Klarion began to recoil. “Considering that on top you your chaos magic and necromancy, you are capable of merging with your familiar to become a monster. A Horigal!”

Klarion flinched at his words. How?! How could Nabu possibly know that? He had never told anyone about Horigals or the fact that he was the only Witch Boy in recorded history that could turn into one. The Light never knew, he’d never told them! It had taxed his and Teekl’s magic a great deal the one time they had done it and he never wanted to go through that experience again. There was also the deep and dark fear that they would cage him indefinitely, like a rabid beast. 

“I’ve never told anyone about that a-and besides, Witch-Boys c-can’t become Horigals-“ Klarion suddenly wanted to wretch at the thought of... those things. Those awful, terrifying monsters. “-we aren’t powerful enough... w-we would be ripped apart.”

Nabu stayed silent. For a moment, Klarion thought that maybe, Nabu believed him.

“That may be true for others, but you. You were powerful enough. I know for a fact you turned into one, to defeat a certain... Melmoth.” Klarion felt his blood run cold and all the colour drain from his face. Just the name sent his whole body into a state of complete despair. The terrible memories started playing at the forefront of his mind. The evil smile, the traffickers, the laugh. It sent waves upon waves of bone shattering fear through him. 

Klarion’s chest tightened in a painful vice grip. This was becoming too much. Nabu has gone too far. He didn’t want to remember, he didn’t want to relive his worst nightmares. A few tears slipped from his eyes. His shoulders shook and his breathing was beyond erratic at this point. He wanted to run and hide from this. He wanted Teekl. He wanted Zatanna’s comforting presence. He didn’t want his darkest memories resurfaced in front of the entire Justice League and their protégés. He didn’t want to give them more ammunition to make him suffer. 

Nabu came even closer and Klarion recoiled away as best he could. His injuries flared with his movements, causing him to hiss in unbearable pain. He could feel his heart beat pounding incessantly in his temples as the panic began to crush his chest. 

“Do I need to reveal exactly what your family... your own people did to you after that?” Nabu whispered, his voice sinister and unyielding. Tears stared to pour from Klarion’s eyes at the prospect. He couldn’t. Not in front of everyone. Not when he was at his most vulnerable. Not here. Not with Nabu present. No, the barrier couldn’t fail him. His jaw trembled hard and his hands were vibrating with panic. Klarion looked up at Nabu with pleading eyes.

“Not that. Please.” He whispered shakily. 

“Give me names then.” Nabu hissed in return. Klarion shook his head sporadically, more tears falling from his terrified eyes.

“No I-I-“

“I want names boy!” Nabu exclaimed.

“I-I can’t-“

“I said names Witch Boy!” A fist slammed against the table and Klarion flinched so violently he nearly fell off his chair. 

“They will kill me if I tell you!” Klarion screamed, his shaking arms gesturing at chest. He was desperate to get away, his wrists were hurting against the restraints and the inhibitor collar felt like a noose. 

“Give me names or the world sees how you BURNED!” Nabu spat with such hatred that Klarion felt as though his chest was being stabbed. His vision began to blur at the sides and he could barely feel his body. All he could hear was the ragged sounds of his breathing. The tears wouldn’t stop. 

Suddenly he could smell the smoke, he could feel the heat and his resolve crumbled. His mental defences were starting to fall, every emotion he had felt on that fateful night came flooding in. Klarion closed his eyes tightly trying to keep the awful memories at bay until he was alone. He took a wheezing breath and fixated his gaze on a random point on the wall. He couldn’t do this anymore. He couldn’t fight Nabu, not in this state. Not after having to relive every traumatic event of his life in front of an audience.

“Fine.” He whispered, his voice thick with tears. He hesitated a moment. “Vandal Savage. Lex Luthor. Ra’s al Ghul. Queen Bee. The Brain. And Ocean Master.”

More tears poured as his spirit finally broke inside of him. As he listed those names, he felt a part of himself die inside. It was cemented now. He would not survive this.

“Say louder for our audience.” Nabu said ominously. Klarion’s breath hitched and he closed his eyes again, feeling the hot tears fall down his face. The humiliation stung.

“Vandal Savage. Lex Luthor. Ra’s al Ghul. Queen Bee. The Brain. Ocean Master.” He repeated slowly and as clearly as possible.

Klarion looked down at his bound hands, a strong and oppressing despair filling his body. It was in this moment that he so desperately wanted to cease existing. Simply just disappear and no longer be. The Light would come after him from one side and the League would continue their assault on him from the other. He was exhausted by the politics of this conflict. Exhausted by the memories of his darkest traumas. He just wanted to cease, just to be free of this deep internal pain he felt. He felt like he was being eaten alive by the dark void.

He registered Nabu backing away slowly and he lifted his head slightly. His hands shook so violently it hurt.

“You really are vile and pathetic Witch-Boy.” Nabu spat hatefully. A particularly painful tremor passed through Klarion’s chest. “And now... everyone will see you... for what you truly are.”

Before Klarion could even register his words, he felt the cold air of the room sting his bare skin. He looked down. His sweater was gone, leaving him topless. His horrific bruises and injuries were on full display. His head snapped up to Nabu and his eyes widened in horror when he was met with a golden Ankh. His heart stopped beating and his breath left his lungs.

“No-“ He cried, his voice impossibly small and terrified. He suddenly felt the glamour rupture and fray. The glamour he had been wearing for years to protect his sanity. The glamour he had been wearing to force himself to forget. Forget the physical and emotional pain it had caused him. Forget blistering heat and the fear he had felt. Forget the shouts of his mother and sister calling him a monster. 

Klarion looked down at his hands and his skin flickered. It crackled a few times before it finally cracked under the pressure of Dr. Fate. Klarion watched as the pale skin on his right hand darkened into a dark red. A horrific dark red that spanned his whole right arm and shoulder, travelling up to his jaw and down onto parts of his torso. Klarion cried out helplessly and he began to hyperventilate.

It didn’t help that he could feel the fire again, that he could smell the smoke and see the tall flames.

__________________________________________

Where the League and the Team had been watching, no one moved out of morbid curiosity. Everyone’s gazes was fixed on the horrible dark red burn that spanned the Witch-Boy’s body. The reactions ranged from horrified, to nauseated to fascinated. A few looked away, some covered their open hanging mouths and others just stared.

Only Flash and Captain Marvel managed to recover fast enough to stand. They looked to each other, concern and guilt etched on their faces. One moment they were with their colleagues, the next they were racing to the interrogation room at their fastest speeds.

On the other side of the two way mirror, Zatanna was shaking with fury, with tears running down her fair cheeks. She hadn’t recovered yet from the initial shock, her gaze fixed on Klarion. Jason Blood looked murderous, his eyes staring at Batman, who had faltered when the glamour fell. 

Teekl was restless in Zatanna’s arms. She had watched her master be tormented by their eternal enemy and she could sense her master was spiralling to a dark place he couldn’t come back from without help.  
__________________________________________

Klarion stared at his arm. Stared at the dark red ink-like stain that marred his skin. It made him feel like vomiting the longer he looked at it. He tried to move his arm away from his vision but the shackles wouldn’t allow it. His soft cries had turned into pitiful sobs, making his hyperventilation far worse. He suddenly flinched violently when Nabu moved across him, causing him to fall backwards onto the floor. 

He didn’t register the pain it caused his broken ribs or the way a hot wave of pain flared in his left arm. No. All he could feel was unbearable heat and the tight rope biting into his skin. He could only hear the roaring of the flames and the sounds of the people of Limbo Town screaming at him. Monster. Heresy. Blasphemy. Devil. Burn. Die. Perish. His vision was consumed by tall, bright flames and pillars of black smoke. He couldn’t breathe, his lungs constricted agonisingly with lack of precious air. He could smell the smoke and burning flesh. He heard Teekl screaming in pain and his own shrieks as the fire raged over him.

Klarion felt his back hit something. What? He didn’t know nor did he care. His very being was being swallowed by raging fire. He looked over the dark red that spread over him, releasing one painful sob before he was consumed by terror. Then his mind shut down and he wasn’t aware of anything except fear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well that was intense.  
> I made Fate a right asshole on purpose because reasons.  
> Now we can finally start to dive deep into Klarion psychological trauma, yay!  
> Leave a comment and let me know what you thought!


	16. XVI

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hellooo I’m back again with another chapter!
> 
> Tw: accidental self harm, panic attacks, description of injuries, PTSD, a wee bit of swearing.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

“You had better have a mighty good reason for whatever the fuck that was!” Yelled Blood, his fists clenched hard by his side as they walked. Zatanna lead the way, her rage making her go on a warpath. She could sense Teekl’s equally strong anger, her small claws digging into her jacket. What Dr. Fate had done was heinous, it was cruel. Exposing Klarion’s deepest traumas that Zatanna had not even come close to considering crossed so many unspoken lines. 

“We had an idea that should have worked, I didn’t think that Fate would resort to that. This wasn’t part of the plan!” Batman’s voice was not as gravelly and even as usual. Clearly this had surprised him liked everyone else. Zatanna just felt more angry. How could Batman, the world’s so called greatest detective, not have seen this coming. Nabu had made it abundantly clear leading up to this that he did not care for Klarion’s well being. In fact, Fate had done everything in his power to make Klarion suffer. 

“I don’t fucking care if that wasn’t part of the plan! This is psychotic!” Jason yelled angrily. Zatanna wholeheartedly agreed. Her and Blood would need to sit down and have a conversation when this was over. She could practically hear Batman’s scowl behind her.

“I didn’t think Fate would go that far! Especially after Etrigan warned us!” Batman grunted. Zatanna growled, stopping her track. She whirled around and was met with two very shocked expressions. In her arms, Teekl bared her teeth, a low level hiss escaping her. 

“I’m sorry, but this behaviour isn’t new! Or did you forget that Fate held my LIFE hostage so he could have my father’s body as a host!” Zatanna all but screamed. She was too angry to censor herself in front of these adults. She didn’t care at this point. “You’re unbelievably naive for thinking Nabu gives a single flying fuck about principles when it comes to Klarion!”

Batman hung his head ever so slightly and Blood looked stunned. When neither said anything, Zatanna spun around again. Up ahead, she saw Flash and Captain Marvel approaching fast. They then skidded to an abrupt halt right in front of her and the door. She locked eyes with Captain Marvel, who was devoid of his usual upbeat and optimistic demeanour. His brows were furrowed and he wore a scowl. Under his adult form, it would seem that Billy was just as angry as her and Blood. To his left was Flash, who seemed enraged, more than the first time he told off the Team for being horrible. 

“What the hell was that?!” Flash yelled, his anger directed at Batman. 

Before Batman could respond, Zatanna moved to the metal door of the interrogation room. She manoeuvred Teekl to sit on her shoulders, earning a small purr from the tabby cat. Zatanna grasped the cold handle. She braced herself and pulled, using her pent up anger to swing it open. A rush of air came from the room and she stepped inside. Fate stood next to the table, his stance completely relaxed. His faceless helmet was looking to the side, irritation and disgust radiating off of the Lord of Order in waves. Zatanna looked to her right and saw the object of Fate’s attention. 

What struck Zatanna first was Klarion’s breathing. It was erratic and far too fast, the movements aggravating his still broken ribs. He was practically wheezing, not enough air entering his abused lungs. Zatanna felt the air in her own lungs escape her when she registered the way Klarion curled in on himself. His whole body trembling violently, barely audible sobs escaping him. His eyes were glassy and didn’t focus on anything, just looking around wildly. From where she stood she could only see parts of the horrific burn that had just been exposed. His right arm stood out horribly against the livid blue that covered his left arm and shoulder. She felt a stinging behind her eyes. This was so many kinds of wrong. 

Zatanna steeled her nerves and looked back at Dr. Fate. The gold helmet turned in her direction ever so slowly, causing the cold light to reflect off of it. Fate looked directly in her eyes and Zatanna felt her rage ignite once again. She had never felt more resentful towards the Lord of Order for taking her father than she did in that moment. Using her father for his delusional attacks on Klarion while he was so defenceless. 

“Get out.”

“Do not presume you can give me orders girl.”

“I said out, Nabu. You’ve crossed a line.”

“My conflict with the Witch-Boy does not adhere to your earthly standards of morality, do not convince yourself that getting in the middle of it will change anything.” He took a step closer, his eyes baring into Zatanna. She stood her ground, she squared her shoulders and all but snarled at the Lord of Order. “But fine. Though I am quite certain the Justice League will be pleased with what we have learned here today, even if it required more... unsavoury methods of interrogation.” 

Zatanna felt a chill go up her spine, a freezing chill. Fate’s poisonous aura was suffocating and she felt a dread start to seep into her. In the back of her mind she wondered if this is what Klarion felt, this oppressing dread that pushed any light away. Ironic, since all Dr. Fate seemed to do was radiate bright golden light, it never occurred to her that Fate’s light would bring such despair. 

She watched Fate’s helmet turn towards Klarion’s trembling form one last time before he began making his way to the door. Zatanna moved out of his way, her focus on the Lord of Chaos having a violent anxiety attack. Time slowed as Fate walked out, in the background she could hear several raised voices in a screaming match. From the sounds of it, Flash and Jason Blood were shouting colourfully at a condescending Dr. Fate. The screaming echoed in the metal room, mixing with Klarion’s erratic breathing, creating a nightmarish array of sounds ringing in her ears.

Teekl jumped off her shoulder and approached the Witch-Boy very slowly, as if she was exercising caution. It was so strange, as Teekl never hesitated in anything when it came to her master. Zatanna shook herself, pushing the screaming to the back of her mind. She jerked forward to her knees, sliding slightly across the floor until she was right in front of Klarion. 

She gasped when she finally registered the severity of Klarion’s burn. It was so much worse up close. 

The colour was a vivid dark red, almost the colour of blood. It was made more intense by the harsh bright lights of the interrogation room. The vivid blue of Klarion’s bruises on his left arm contrasted horribly against the red. The burn looked like blood red ink spreading in water, it almost looked like it moved on Klarion’s pale skin, swirling in elegant twists and circles somehow. It was large, stretching over the right side of his body leaving very few patches of skin unmarred. Zatanna’s eyes travelled over the burn, starting at his fingertips where it spread over his forearm and bicep. It wrapped around his whole arm up to his shoulder and continued over his torso and likely over his back, though she couldn’t see it from where she was sitting. It spanned over his collar bone and over his neck, the fire having reached up extremely high on Klarion’s body. The burn continued over his jaw, but only a little, the fire having just spared his face, only just. From where she kneeled, Zatanna could see how it wrapped around the right side of his neck, a less severe burn that just narrowly avoided his hair line and making the inhibitor collar stand out horrifically against it.

A few tears escaped Zatanna’s wide eyes. She couldn’t imagine the agony he must have gone through, the suffering the healing process must have caused. Especially the pain of having to look in the mirror and remember. Remember the fire and the torture of burning.

Zatanna knew the shock would not wear odd, not any time soon, but she knew she needed to help Klarion. He had pulled his knees up to his chest and buried his face in them, his body curled up tightly. His breathing was so erratic it scared her and the violent trembling was turning into violent convulsions with his sobs. On instinct she reached out and grabbed his bound hands, holding them tightly in hers. He flinched and tried to get away, but his strength failed him. Zatanna squeezed his hands slightly and moved closer.

“Hey hey hey, hey, it’s okay. You’re okay. Nabu is gone, he’s gone.” Zatanna said in a hushed tone. Klarion whimpered at the mention of Nabu, curling in on himself further. Zatanna felt a panic of her own grip her chest. She had no idea what she was doing. Klarion inhaled sharply with what sounded like a particularly painful sob. “Klarion, Klarion, you need to breathe, please. Please, look at me.”

Klarion’s hands tightened around hers and he lifted his head minutely. His eyes were shadowed by his hair, but he was looking at her. Zatanna felt her heart break when she met his gaze. His onyx eyes were haunted and terrified, bloodshot from crying. They were glazed over in a way that made her suspect that he didn’t really know where he was. 

“Okay, okay, just follow my breathing, just copy me, okay?” Zatanna started inhaling and exhaling loudly, letting her chest inflate and deflate as she went. Klarion began trying to copy her, but it seemed like his body had other plans. His breath came out in short pants and his eyes screwed shut.

“I can’t-“ He whispered, his voice breathless. “I’m sor-“ his speech was cut off by another painful sob and he squeezed his eyes tight. Tears cascaded down his face as he struggled to breathe. Zatanna moved even closer, feeling Teekl jump into her lap as she did.

“It’s okay, just take it slow, don’t worry about anything else okay? Just breathe.” Zatanna said, squeezing his hands again. In her lap, Teekl was pawing at Klarion’s shins, offering what small comfort she could give with their bond severed by the magical blocks. She started breathing deeply again, exaggerating her movements for Klarion to follow. “Come on, breathe with me, it’s okay.”

He looked at her with wide eyes again and raised his head a bit more. He kept his gaze firmly on Zatanna, doing his best to follow her movements and regulate his breathing again. It took several attempts before he got a genuine deep breath in and several attempts after that to do it again. He was so shaky as he tried to simply breathe and Zatanna just wanted to curl up and cry. She vaguely registered that the screaming outside the room was dying down, making it slightly easier to focus on her task at hand.

Klarion started to slowly uncurl, his chest expanding more with every breath. The hyperventilating was starting to go away and the convulsing returned to a less violent trembling. Zatanna sighed with relief, but she knew she had to keep going.

“That’s good, keep going, you’re doing great.” She said softly. Teekl was standing up on her hind legs, her front paws resting on Klarion’s knees now. Her head was in his line of vision and the combination of Teekl and Zatanna in front of him together seemed to relax him a bit more. “You’re not there, you’re safe. You’re safe with me.”

They sat there breathing for a few more minutes before Klarion regained some sense of where he was. He rested his head against the wall and looked around fearfully. His hands continued to squeeze Zatanna’s in an uneven rhythm, but his breathing was beginning to even out. Tears kept falling out of his eyes though, running down his hollow cheeks at an alarming speed. 

As Zatanna watched him, her eyes wandered to the burn again. The way it curled around the right side of Klarion’s jaw was frightening, like a sickly caress of dark red. It didn’t help that the inhibitor collar looked so heavy around his scarred neck, weighing him down. Zatanna felt a coldness spread over her chest as she thought more about the implications of that burn. It scared her and she felt so guilty for not reacting faster when Fate exposed it to the world.

When Klarion’s breathing finally evened out, only hitching occasionally as he continued to cry, Zatanna reluctantly let go of his hands and placed them on the shackles. She wasn’t sure if what she was about to attempt would actually work but she would give it a try anyways.

“Selkcahs etarapes dna emoceb stelecarb.” She chanted, putting as much power in her voice as she could. Klarion shut his eyes and turned his head. The shackles flowed gold and slowly the chain that linked them disappeared. The cuffs lost their width and thinned, morphing back into the bracelets he had been wearing most of his captivity. Zatanna knew she couldn’t take them off, only Nabu could, but this was the next best thing. Just as she was about to grab Klarion’s hands again, Jason Blood walked in, his footsteps so light they barely made a sound. 

“Everything okay?” He asked softly as he kneeled down on Klarion’s left. Zatanna nodded hesitantly. No, none of this was okay, but she supposed it was as good as it was going to get at this point. 

Klarion’s breath hitched and more tears fell. He raised both of his hands ever so slowly towards the inhibitor collar. He sniffled a few times, his breath coming out shaky again.

“I feel like I’m suffocating.” His voice was a soft whine, the pain and despair behind his words not lost on the other two magic users. His shaking hands grasped the collar tightly, his knuckles quickly turning white. “I need to get this off.”

Zatanna and Jason exchanged weary glances.

“Klarion, I don’t think-“ Jason started, but was cut off by Klarion crying out as he exhaled. He pulled slightly on the collar.

“No-no- I need- I need this off-“ Klarion mumbled. His black nails moved to wrap around the collar and very close to his neck. He squeezed his eyes shut once more, the tears seemingly coming in waves. “I-I need this off- get it off, get it off-“

Before either Zatanna or Jason could register what was unfolding in front of them, Klarion’s nails dug into his neck and he pulled. His sharp nails raked into his skin as he desperately pulled on the collar. When the collar wouldn’t budge, his hands would fall to his collar bones, where his sharp nails continued to rake bloody marks. Angry red lines were forming as he continued to scratch deeply into his neck and collar bones, crying hysterically for someone, anyone to get it off. He repeated that several times before doing the same to his wrists, trying in vain to get the cuffs off as well. Neither restraint so much as moved and out of panic, Klarion kept scratching at his neck. 

Jason recovered first, lunging at Klarion and grabbing his wrists, wrenching them away from his neck. The damage had already been done, small streams of blood came from the several deep scratches around Klarion’s neck, around his collar bones and his forearms.

“Klarion, Klarion, hey, hey, hey, don’t do that, you’re hurting yourself.” Jason said calmly, his voice not betraying an ounce of panic that Zatanna was feeling. Klarion cried out and a sob escaped him.

“Plea-please take it off, please-“ He cried, his head falling forward in defeat. Zatanna shuddered at his cries, her own tears escaping her. His black curls shook as he cried and for some reason that elicited a pang of despair in her chest. Klarion kept trying to scratch his neck, but Jason kept his hands out of reach. He lifted his head a fraction, meeting Zatanna’s eyes. His eyes were so bloodshot it looked liked they were bleeding. “Pleas-please-please- I beg of you take them off-“

More tears spilled from Zatanna’s eyes, mirroring the Lord of Chaos in front of her. In all her experiences with Klarion, all their battles and conflicts, she never pegged him for the begging type. He always had a healthy cockiness and confidence when he created chaos, always taking a childish glee in it. So it made her heart sink when he cried and pleaded breathlessly to be freed of his restraints, to the point where he hurt himself and begged. Zatanna turned to Jason, who looked at a loss of what to do. He still held on tightly to Klarion’s wrists, a little bit of blood seeping between his fingers. His face was scrunched up in worry and his neck was tight with tension. They needed to get Klarion away from here, away from the room and to a safer space where he could recover from this whole ordeal. 

Just as Zatanna was going to suggest moving, in walked Captain Marvel, his face stone serious. Zatanna inclined her head and met his eyes.

“Zatanna, we should get him out of here, Flash doesn’t want the League or the Team anywhere near him.” That Zatanna agreed with wholeheartedly. She nodded quickly and turned to Jason again. His concerned eyes met hers.

“Let me. We’ll be out in a minute.” Zatanna said softly, her gaze alternating between Blood and Captain Marvel. Blood nodded and hesitantly let go of Klarion shaking arms. As the sorcerer made to stand up, Klarion’s head snapped up, his breathing slightly erratic again. Tears continued to cascade down his face, terror gracing delicate features. Zatanna grasped his wrists again, ignoring the blood as best she could. As Jason walked out of the room, Klarion’s head followed him, his breath hitching a few times.

“Klarion, honey, look at me.” Zatanna whispered gently. Klarion turned his head back towards her, his jaw trembling slightly. Zatanna rubbed his forearms a little bit before she took his hands in hers. “Listen to me, okay? We’re going to go back to the Cave, away from everyone and-and we’re gonna take care of the scratches okay? I-I just need you to walk with me and I’ll make sure they don’t bother you and Teekl. You just need to stand and walk with me okay? Can you do that for me?”

Klarion took a shaky breath before tilting his head in a small nod. He looked down at Teekl for a moment who had placed her paws over his hands again, right between where Zatanna was holding his hands. If Klarion wasn’t currently almost hysterically crying, Zatanna would have found this adorable. She squeezed Klarion’s hand once more before letting go and sitting up straight on her knees. Teekl hopped up onto her shoulders again, her crimson eyes not for a moment leaving her master. 

“Teknalb raeppa.” She chanted softly, her palms facing upward. A few seconds later, a black blanket began to materialise in her hands and once it was solid, she draped it over one arm. Zatanna stood up slowly so as not to frighten Klarion further. Once she was stood up straight, she moved to Klarion’s right side and bent over slightly. Her hands reached out to his scarred shoulder, but they hovered there for a moment.

“I’m going to touch you now, okay?” Zatanna whispered. Klarion’s watery eyes looked up at her and he nodded again, seemingly bracing himself for movement right after. She tenderly placed her hands on his shoulder and bicep, a small shiver going up her spine and into her head as she felt the dark red scar. Klarion shuddered at her touch too. Zatanna pulled him up as gently as she could and once he was stood as straight as his injuries would allow, she draped the blanket over his trembling shoulders, shielding his physical trauma from the world. 

Klarion wavered on his feet for a moment before he found his balance. Zatanna kept her hand on his back, lest he lose his balance again. She began leading him towards the door and as they walked so close together, Teekl climbed onto Klarion’s shoulder. He visibly relaxed, turning his head slightly towards his familiar and Zatanna as well. He managed a small, watery smile, his eyes still so full of despair and naked fear. Zatanna smiled back, her eyes suddenly a bit wet again.

They walked out of the interrogation room and were met with Jason Blood, Captain Marvel and The Flash, all waiting anxiously. Klarion immediately tensed and averted his gaze to the floor. Zatanna could feel the anger radiating off of the three men in front of her, underneath their collected faces they were raging. Flash stepped up a bit closer, making Klarion flinch.

“Klarion, listen to me, what Fate did was unacceptable and I’m sorry I didn’t stop it.” At Flash’s words, Klarion raises his head and stared at him with wide eyes. “Once you’re back at the cave and things have settled, myself and Captain Marvel are going to call for these restraints to be removed, to give you a bit more freedom.”

Zatanna’s jaw dropped slightly and she could see Jason mirroring her expression. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind that Flash and Captain Marvel were in Klarion’s corner now. Even Klarion was beginning to believe it. 

“Come on, let’s get you out of here.” Captain Marvel said, gesturing for them to follow Flash. Zatanna kept her hand on Klarion’s back and made sure Teekl wasn’t about to fall before they began walking.

Flash led them through the Watch Tower quickly, with Jason flanking Klarion and Captain Marvel flanking Zatanna. They moved as quickly as they could and even in his exhausted panicked state, Klarion kept up. Likely motivated to get away from this place. Zatanna felt a knot form in her stomach as they walked, she had no idea what she had to do next. She supposed her priority right now was getting back to the cave without any further interruptions, though the universe was never that kind. 

Once they reached the main hall where the Zeta tubes were located, they were met with most of the League and the Team scattered around. Dr. Fate wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Good. Everyone stared awkwardly with a mixture of apprehension and guilt, but that didn’t deter Flash or Captain Marvel or Jason Blood, they just continued onward and shielded Klarion from view. 

Several Leaguers began approaching as they reached the Zeta tubes and Zatanna could feel Klarion start to panic again. His breathing picked up and he looked like he wanted to disappear. Flash and Blood had moved behind the mages, while Captain Marvel started typing something into the control pad of the tubes. An argument was breaking out behind them, angry raises voices echoing in the large chamber.

“No he’s not going to be interrogated again! The names he gave up was more than enough!” Flash yelled. Zatanna turned to look slightly, seeing the Big Three, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Captain Atom and Red Tornado. Behind them was the majority of the Team, looking extremely uncomfortable. 

“He obviously knows more than he’s letting on. We can’t stop now!” Superman said, his tone annoyingly righteous. Zatanna felt Klarion flinch again next to her. She was beginning to feel the fury from earlier rise in her chest. The yelling continued behind them, but her anger drowned out the majority of it. She was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of the Zeta tube activating in front of her. Captain Marvel stood by the Zeta patiently waiting for them to step in. Zatanna heard approaching footsteps behind her. Knowing exactly who they belonged to she made a decision. She turned to Klarion, who looked at her with wide eyes.

“Go with him. I’ll be right behind you.” She said softly. Klarion looked between Captain Marvel and Zatanna before nodding slightly. He took a small breath before breaking from Zatanna’s side. She suddenly felt empty and her heart ached but she couldn’t deal with what that meant now. She watched him walk to Captain Marvel, how put a protective hand on his back. One second they were standing in front of her and with a flash of bright golden light they were gone. 

The shouting and yelling suddenly filtered back into her ears. It was oppressive and it just made her made her more angry. The Team had walked around the Leaguers arguing and were approaching her. 

“You’re whole fucking group is pathetic! What you are doing is not righteous or for the ‘greater good’ as you like to say! It’s abhorrent that you’ve been treating him that way!” Jason Blood was raging it would seem. Zatanna almost wanted to laugh. Yes the League was pathetic, this whole ordeal proved that. 

“We had to. He wasn’t responding when we tried to talk to him.” Black Canary responded, her voice annoyingly even. Blood scoffed.

“No, you didn’t have to. You just wanted an excuse to.” Blood said coldly, his voice dripping with poison. 

When her Team finally reached her, Zatanna crossed her arms over her chest. She kept her face as passive as she could, but she knew that she couldn’t mask her rage. Robin stepped up a bit closer, with Kid Flash only a step behind Artemis not to far away. Behind her was Superboy, Miss Martian and Aqualad. Rocket, her only true ally on the Team other than Aqualad in this situation, was in deep discussion with Icon not too far away. The Team wore guilty expressions on their faces and Zatanna only felt irritated by that. If she was honest with herself, she didn’t want to talk to them. 

“Zee- uhm, look we uh- we saw what...” Robin trailed off, he wouldn’t even meet her gaze. Kid Flash moved to stand next to him.

“It was messed up what Fate did...” Kid said, also trailing off. Zatanna’s eyes narrow, way to state the obvious. 

“Uh- what we are trying to say is uhm- we’re sorry for what we said to you...” Artemis said sheepishly, her eyes staring at a random point past Zatanna. So they weren’t sorry for what Fate did to Klarion, not really. 

“Yeh- it wasn’t fair to you or him...” Robin said, finally looking Zatanna in the eye. His domino mask looked dull as he spoke and Zatanna’s irritation got the better of her. She didn’t want to listen to this, listen to their hollow attempts at making up for what they had said to her. She sighed sharply and shook her head.

“You know what? I don’t want to fucking hear this right now.” She snarled. “Come and find me when you actually know what you want to apologies for.”

And with those cold words, she walked through the Zeta tube without a second thought. The screaming match that was going on between Flash and Jason and the rest of the Leaguers abruptly silenced as she was transported away. Zatanna took several deep breaths, trying her best to calm herself before she saw Klarion again. She knew he wouldn’t respond well to anger. No, he needed her to be calm, that was the only way she could help him.

She reached the cave moments later, the cold air hitting her somewhat hard. She walked out of the shadow that was cast by the rock and squinted slightly at the light. 

In front of her, she only saw Captain Marvel. No Klarion nor Teekl. His arms were crossed over his chest and his head was looking in the direction of the resident’s hall. His brow was furrowed with deep concern and his fingers were tapping on his forearms. Zatanna walked up to him, worry starting to crush her chest in a vice grip.

“Where’s Klarion?” She asked, not liking the way her voice shook a little. Captain Marvel snapped his head towards her and sighed.

“He went straight to his bedroom the second we arrived. He said he needed some space and to be alone. I’m not gonna lie, I’m really worried about him.” He said, Billy’s childlike fear shining through his adult form. “God that burn looks so bad.” He whispered, truly sounding his age then.

Zatanna’s heart dropped even deeper than before. She echoed that sentiment of worry. God she was so worried for Klarion. There was no chance he was in a good state of mind and she couldn’t imagine that being alone in this would help. He was clearly traumatised and suffering because of it. Her only comfort was that Teekl was in there with him, but that made her heart ache since her and Klarion weren’t able to actually communicate beyond emotion interpretation. She let out a defeated sigh and met what she could only describe as Billy’s fearful eyes. 

In the back of her mind, Zatanna started to slowly spiral, much like when she had lost her father to Fate. She wrapped her arms around herself, holding on tight and allowing a few tears to escape her pale blue eyes. With a shaky breath she turned her head towards the resident’s hall, mirroring Captain Marvel. She stood rooted in the spot, once again not knowing how to help her suffering friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was emotional to write not gonna lie. I am making these two suffer, but it’s gonna get a bit better soon! 
> 
> Also, guys please feel free to comment! I love getting comments, it makes me so happy! ❤️


End file.
